Doctor Who: The Colony of Lasel
by NemesisNexus
Summary: The First Doctor and Steven find themselves on a mysterious space colony, where no one arrives and no one ever leaves. As they discover more, they try to help the citizens the best they can, but the road to hell is paved with good intentions. COMPLETED 07/04/2013 Please read and rate
1. Chapter 1- The Colony of Lasel

The huge station hung in space, like a mobile against a ceiling of stars. If anyone viewed it from a passing space craft, they would see a central sphere, a series of cylindrical tubes running around it. Atop the structure was a smaller sphere, set away from the main body of the station. The size and position of the two sections gave the impression, to some, of a huge metallic snowman. That was a long time ago, of course, as no one had passed by for many years now.

Deep inside the higher sphere, the Governor sat in his office, leaning back on his chair. Various screens surrounded him, showing different read outs and schematics of the station. He passed a hand over his balding head, his attention only half on the young officer who stood on the other side of the rather cluttered desk.

"You know the policy Tromas." He stated flatly. "The system has worked for years. No exceptions. There is no need to change it now."

"I know sir." Tromas replied, nervously adjusting the lapel of his deep blue uniform. "But we've never been in this situation before. I wouldn't know, but several of the citizens had a medical background, before. They confirm what Eeva and Greig are saying."

"Of course they would." The Governor snapped. "Of course they are all going to try and get some more food from us. Why wouldn't they? They are just using the woman as an excuse."

"Maybe." Tromas muttered. "But I'm not sure. Eeva has been weak recently. All of the tests show it. It makes sense she would need more nourishment now, with the child on the way."

"The system does not change." The Governor said bluntly. "Any change, any sign of our co-operation, and they will ask for more. Maybe not at first, but it will happen. First more food, then what?"

"But sir, the child."

"But nothing." He shouted at the young officer, watching as he recoiled slightly. "The child only exists because we allowed the pair of them to breed, and they are already pushing for more privileges. Any excuse."

"But it's true." Tromas protested. "Back home," he was cut off angrily.

"You know not to use that word." The Governor snarled. "That word has implications. It implies they can go back." He turned away from the young officer, his face not yet showing the damage of time that his own was. "We both know they can't." He paused, looking to a picture on his wall, a large field stretching across the horizon, a small farmhouse in the foreground. "They can't go back, just as we can't. The Lasel Station is their home now, as much as it is ours."

The silence hung in the air for a few moments, enough time for the Governors mind to slip back to his life before Lasel. He'd been lucky enough to be able to juggle his career and home life rather well, his expanding family not holding back his progression through the ranks of the Federation. So many young men he knew had been sent off world, preventing them from having any sort of family, aside from their brothers-in-arms, but he was fortunate enough to have remained stationed on Earth.

Until Lasel, of course. But by then, he had nothing left to stay on Earth for. His children had grown, left for their own lives, his wife was gone, taken from him by ill-health. All that he had left was the farmhouse, which felt less and less like home as each member of his family left it. Then he discovered the Lasel project. The Governor had always known it was going to be a one way trip, but the cause was a good one. If he was going to spend the rest of his life alone, with only a job for company, he may as well make a difference.

It was Tromas and the rest of his offices he felt sorry for. Unlike him, they hadn't had any choice in their assignment to the station. Their jobs were chosen for them by a higher power, a power that had sentenced dozens of young men to a life aboard Lasel, never to return home.

He turned back to the officer, ready to dismiss him. Tromas only wanted what he thought was best for the citizens, but the Governor knew better. He had been in this position many times over the years, and knew that any sign of co-operation, of weakness, would be taken advantage of. His people already thought that they had claimed a victory, with Eeva and Griegs' child the first to be conceived on Lasel. Previously, any interaction of the sort was strictly illegal. The government had declared it a trial, of course, to asses the feasibility of continuing life on the station. It was a thinly veiled deceit, but the people believed it, out of hope that things were changing. The governor knew better of course, he knew the real reason for the lapse in the rule.

"Tell them no." The Governor said finally. "And there are to be no further such requests."

"But if they insist, sir?"

"Then you insist harder." He glared at Tromas. "Don't forget your place, and don't let them forget it either." He paused as Tromas turned to leave. "They are not your family, or your friends, Tromas. You are an officer of Lasel, and your word is my word. Do not let them forget their place."

"Yes." Tromas muttered under his breath as the door slid open automatically. "Prisoners."

XXXX

"Well then," The Doctor said as the door of the TARDIS creaked open. "Let's take a look around, shall we? He stepped out of the blue box, pulling his cloak over his shoulders.

"Where are we this time, Doctor?" Steven asked, looking around at their new surroundings, a feeling of warmth suddenly falling over him. Throughout his travels with the Doctor, Steven didn't think he's ever landed anywhere that had felt so familiar. The dull grey of the walls, the dim, flickering lighting and the dull hum of machinery in the background made him feel instantly at home. "It's a space station." He beamed. "It is, isn't it?"

"It would appear so, my boy." The Doctor replied, looking around for himself. "Yes, yes, it certainly looks like a space station to me."

"The years I spent on one of these." Steven smiled. "Well, more than one, actually. From one to the next, year upon year. All so different, but all the same, in a way."

"Always a wanderer, hm?" The Doctor pondered. "No wonder you've taken to life with me so easily."

"Life with you's a bit different from just stopping off to refuel, Doctor." Steven smirked. "Much more dangerous too."

"That's never the intention dear boy." The Doctor reminded him, as he looked at the walls carefully. "But I can't help but be curious."

"What is it?" Steven asked, moving to the Doctors' side. "Interesting piece of wall?"

"Perhaps." The Doctor tilted his head. "You know space stations Steven, what do you see?"

"A wall." He replied shortly, annoyed at being patronised. A moment later, however, he realised what the Doctor was referring to, running a finger across the wall and looking at it closely. "Perfectly clean walls." He turned to the Doctor. "I've never seen space station alls this clean."

"Yes, yes."The Doctor agreed. "Most strange, as it's not new by any means. Listen."

Steven paused for a moment, listening to the hum around him.

"I see what you mean." He nodded. "Not smooth enough to be new, too many bumps and creaks. This thing's been operational for years."

"But spotless." The Doctor reminded him. "Most intriguing."

"We do try." A voice interrupted them. "Daily cleaning duties." The Doctor and Steven turned around to the new comer, an apparently middle aged man, wearing a beige jumpsuit.

"A very good job, I must say." The Doctor replied. "We were just admiring your handy work."

The man shrugged, "It's all of us really."

"All of you?" Steven questioned. "All of who?"

"What do you mean?" The man asked. "Just who are you?I've not seen you down here before."

"Oh, just visitors." The Doctor smiled, looking over the mans' uniform, noticing a patch on his left breast, embroidered "Grieg".

"Visitors?" Grieg's face lit up. "We've never had visitors."

"Never?" Steven exclaimed, looking around. "It does seem rather quiet."

"Just what is this place for?" The Doctor asked. "A space station, I know, but what purpose does it serve?"

"Purpose?" Grieg looked puzzled. "It's our home. How can you not know that?"

"We're not from around here." Steven shrugged. "Just dropped by." He looked to the Doctor. "Not for long though."

Griegs' face suddenly lit up.

"You mean you can leave?"

"What sort of question is that?" The Doctor retorted. "What can come can go, of course my boy. It's the way of the universe after all."

Grieg shook his head.

"Not here it isn't. No one ever leaves Lasel."

XXXX

The Governor span a half turn in his chair, looking up to the picture of the farm house, as he so often did and giving a deep sigh. He wondered if it was still there, if someone had taken it on, or if it had been flattened, to make way for something else. The house had been old fashioned even when he had moved in, a very rustic little building compared to the shining tower blocks that made up the cities of the thirty-first building was a reconstruction, of course, built using twentieth century methods and materials. There was something so quaint and elegant about the building, something so unique, the Governor had fallen in love with it instantly. His colleagues had berated him for leaving the comfort of the city, unable to understand why he would make his family live in such a primitive way, but he ignored them. He'd hated his living quarters in the city, it was the same as everyone else's, nothing to make it their own. When they'd found the farm house, he knew it was perfect for them.

The Governor thought back to his conversation with Tromas, and suddenly felt very hypocritical. He'd always preached that the station was their home now, yet he keep the picture there, a memory of the only place he ever really considered 'home'. Perhaps, he thought, he should take it down, even if just to show some sensitivity for his officers. It was easier with the citizens. They didn't need an explanation for why they were here, they were just expected to obey and live their lives. However, his staff were a different matter. He needed them to continue with their duties, and for that to happen, their morale needed to be high. He'd found that out in the early days, when he'd barely managed to curb a mutiny.

Tromas had been loyal even then, the only one of his young officers to follow his commands to the letter and help him reign the others in. Even so, he'd never been soft on him. Just as he'd told the young man earlier, everyone needed to know their place, know that he was in charge. And the Governor was the only one who could ever know the true reason why.

With little warning, the door slide open, the Governor jumping to his feet instinctively. He was about to reach for his weapon, as Tromas entered the room, obviously flustered.

"Sir!" He shouted. "Intruders!"

"What? The Governor exclaimed. "What do you mean, intruders?"

"Two men sir, in the living area. Signals appeared around two minutes ago."

"Then get security down there, now."

"They are already on their way, sir." Tromas said, shaking.

"Good work." The Governor nodded appreciatively. "Then we should soon find out just who they are."

XXXX

Eeva sat on the side of their bed, a hand resting on her stomach. She'd long given up on having a child, once she'd found herself on Lasel, on the day her life changed forever. Even when she had met Grieg, they had both known that nothing could ever come of their attraction to one another. As they were told when they awoke, any communion between two people was strictly forbidden.

That in mind, she couldn't quite believe what was happening when she stood next to Grieg in the area of the station designated as the chapel, with the Governor himself declaring them man and wife. They were the first, and possibly the last, married couple on the station. They had both feared that the other citizens would turn on them out of jealousy, but the far was unfounded. Everyone had been so happy for them, perhaps because it gave them hope that one day it would be a common occurrence.

Despite all of this, it had still been beyond her wildest dreams that they would ever be permitted to pro-create. Yes, it meant an awful lot of time in the medical lab, but it was all worth it. Even the dizzy spells and the nausea was worth it, if it meant they could have a child, the first ever on Lasel. Eeva heard footsteps in the corridor outside and sprung to her feet. She'd been waiting for what seemed like hours for Tromas to return, to give her the Governors response to her request. She knew that the system had never changed before, but there had to be a first time for everything.

As the door lid open, her face dropped a little when she saw it was her husband. Seeing the look on his face, she quickly forced a smile, hoping not to offend him. That soon turned to a look of confusion, however, as an old white haired man and a younger man, wearing a dark blazer over a shirt, followed Greig in to their living quarters.

"Doctor, Steven," Grieg gestured to each of them in turn."This is my wife, Eeva."

Steven held out a hand, which she shook nervously.

"Pleased to meet you."

"Pleasure." Steven smiled.

"Plus one, too, I see." The Doctor grinned. "Very good, yes, very good indeed."

"Isn't it though." She beamed. "The very first."

"The first?" Steven questioned. "First what?"

"First baby on Lasel, of course." Grieg answered. "You really don't know where we are, do you?"

"Why, of course we do." The Doctor nodded, subtly gesturing for Steve to do the same. "We're on the Lasel Station."

"He told you that." Eeva replied, cocking her head, and glaring at them with wide blue eyes. As she looked to Steven she subconsciously fixed her should length auburn hair.

"She's got you there, Doctor." Steven shrugged, before turning back to the couple. "So what is this place?"

"Our home." Eeva replied.

"For all of us." Grieg continued. "Almost two hundred citizens, plus a few dozen staff and officers."

"I assumed as much." The Doctor nodded. "But why. Why did you come here, hm?"

"We didn't." Eeva turned away. "We were chosen, taken from Earth, to a new life here."

"But why?" Steven pushed. "Who bought you here?"

"We try not to think about it." Grieg answered. "We don't remember anything before we were here, and there is nothing beyond it, s there is little point in speculation."

"Oh, there's always merit in speculation my boy." The Doctor pondered. "Though I wonder the staff you mention would feel the same way hm?"

"But why are you here?" Eeva demanded. "There hasn't been anyone new since we all woke up here."

"Just visiting, they said." Grieg answered, excitedly. 'They just visit places, all different places."

Eeva looked to them in wonderment.

"You mean..?"

"Yes." Grieg smiled, putting an arm around his wife. "They can leave."

Steven looked to the Doctor uncomfortably.

"That doesn't mean we can take you with us though, does it Doctor?"

The old man shot a look to his companion, silently berating him for his insensitivity, before placing a comforting arm around the woman.

"I'm afraid young Steven may be right, my dear. If we don't know why you're here, I can't jolly well just take you away, can I? Hm? It might be important, important that you are all here."

Grieg moved to his wife's side, gently but firmly moving the Doctors' arm from his wife's' shoulder and moving him away from her, before comforting her himself. He looked to the pair of travellers accusingly.

"So that's it is it? Just get our hopes up and leave?"

"We did nothing of the sort!" Steven protested. "You assumed!"

"And you," another voice echoed from the doorway, an officer in deep blue pointing a large laser weapon in to the room, "will not be going anywhere."

Grieg and Eeva shuffled back in to the corner of the room, terrified, each with a hand on their unborn child. A second guard entered the room, as the first kept his gaze on Steven and the Doctor, staring at them through his tinted visor.

"No one leaves Lasel." The guard barked.

"So I hear." The Doctor said, hand on his lapels. "I do wonder why?"

"Because that is the law." The officer replied, weapon still trained on the Doctor. "You're under arrest."


	2. Chapter 2- Rumblings

"This way." The guard ordered from under his helmet, roughly leading the Doctor from Greig and Eevas' living quarters.

"No need to be so rough." Steven moaned, shrugging a tightly gripped hand from his his shoulder. "We're going, we're going."

"Keep moving." The guard barked, shoving Steven slightly. The Doctor looked over his shoulder, to see his companion clenching his fist in anger.

"What my young friend means," the Doctor said cheerfully, "is that we'll gladly go under our own steam, if you lead the way." He paused. "Isn't that right Steven?"

"Of course." Steven muttered through clenched teeth, reluctantly walking down the metal corridor.

Before the door could slide closed, Greig poked his head out, watching as the two strangers were lead away. It had been such a long time since anyone had been taken to the Brig. Out of the whole population, except for the staff of course, there were only a handful of people that had ever seen it. Grieg looked to his side where his wife had appeared.

"They'll be ok, won't they?" She asked quietly,

"I think it depends." He put an arm around her waist.

'On what?"

"On just who they are. Now the Governor knows they are here, it's not likely he'll let them leave."

"They can leave?" A familiar voice shipped in, stepping out of their own living quarters. Eeva rolled her eyes, part of her surprised that it had taken so long for Malia to poke her nose in. The other part of her knew that the only reason it had been so long was that she had been up against the wall with a glass, listening in. "Is it true? They can leave?"

"That's what they said, Malia." Greig sighed. "That's all we know."

"It's all change lately, isn't it." She said excitedly, pointing at Eevas' stomach. "And now this! What next?"

"I'm sure you'll find something." Greig muttered, prompting a swift elbow in the ribs from his wife. All these years on the station, Malia was the only person on the colony he had struggled to tolerate. Eeva said it was the fact she lived next door to them, but Greig knew different; it was her annoying busy body personality that drove him crazy. However, she was Eevas' friend, someone she trusted and would be there for her if she ever needed it, so that was a reason to try and resist the urge to cause her physical harm, he supposed.

It had been difficult for them, the first few weeks after their wedding ceremony. There were some people who thought that Greig and Eeva must have had some kind of deal going on with the Governor, and that being associated with them might result in the same privileges. Therefore, they had very quickly learnt how to spot those people and keep their distance. Greig had to feel sorry for them though, after all, they had been in the same position. Although the rule was in place, banning any sort of relationship between citizens, it was inevitable, in the situation they were all in that people would grow close and develop feelings for each other. Everyone knew it happened, pairs of people suddenly spending more and more time together, but as long as they didn't do anything to explicitly break the rule, people would turn a blind eye. Even some of the officers were becoming more lax, without the Governors' knowledge, of course. Greig just hoped that their marriage wouldn't be the last.

When the Governor first called them both to his office in the Upper Section, they had thought the worst. Perhaps they had been too obvious, they thought, maybe one of the officers, or another citizen even, had tipped the Governor off. However, when he had told them that, if they wished, he would allow them to be together, they were both elated. This was the first, he'd said, to see how feasible it was to change the way of life for everyone on the station. Now they had a baby on the way too, the only thing that could make Greig happier would be if everyone else could experience the happiness he was feeling right now.

Even Malia. There had been a time where Greig would have put money on his neighbour turning in illegal couples to the authorities, either directly, or via her gossiping. That changed, however, since her feelings for Aleca had started to grow. She may have been a nosy gossip, he thought, but in the end, she was still one of them and deserved to be just as happy as they were.

He looked to his wife, who now had Malia grilling her for any information on the Doctor and Steven. By the time the two strangers had disappeared from the end of the corridor, the woman was bounding in the other direction, no doubt on the way to tell anyone and everyone she came across. Greig gave his wife a thin smile, before putting an arm around her shoulder and leading her back in to their custom double living quarters.

XXXX

"Not as clean down here" Steven muttered, as he and the Doctor were lead through the entrance to the Brig. The corridors were near-identical, as was usually the case with such stations, to save money. However, it was obvious the cleaning rota didn't extend this far.

Saying nothing, the guard continued to lead them down the corridor, past almost a dozen open doors. Steven quickly took the opportunity to make note of the locking mechanism, visible on the the edge of the open doors and cursed to himself. Even with the limited time he had it was obvious that he and the Doctor wouldn't stand a chance at opening one of those doors from the inside.

He'd already been through so much with the Doctor, and come out of the other side. Steven had seen enough however, to not assume that this would end well. After all, it wasn't that long ago that he had seen Katerina, Bret Vyon and Sara all die at the Doctors' side. Even before his travels with the Doctor, Stevens' life had been dangerous, flying starships around the galaxy, both in and out of combat, and ultimately being captured by the Mechanoids, but with the Doctor there seemed to be an even higher risk.

These thoughts had haunted him for the past few weeks, but just like the ones that had plagued him during his first months as a pilot, Steven had managed to hide them away. However, as he and the Doctor were led in to a cell, he couldn't help but feel the nagging doubts tug at him once again.

XXXX

The room designated as the Canteen, although it's use was far from that of its' namesake, spent one hundred and fifty hours a week deserted. After all, no one had any reason to pass by, outside of the designated supply hours. It was a routine the residents of Lasel were all more than familiar with by now; every third day of the week, previously designated as Wednesday, the staff would open the doors to the Canteen. Each individual was assigned five minutes to collect their weekly supplies, strictly rationed down to the last bean and drop of water.

This was the system they had been introduced to upon their awaking on the station, and it hadn't changed since. Despite the efficiency of the staff, and the system itself, due to the sheer amount of numbers the whole process took sixteen hours per week, plus two afterwards for the room to be cleaned. Everyone knew this, and knew that the government had supplies to last them as long as was needed, providing it was rationed, but it didn't stop the entire population from swamping the Canteen at once, to ensure they didn't miss out.

This, of course, resulted in a very noisy few hours each week, as two hundred people, minus Eeva, gathered together to collect their supplies. Usually the room was full of inane chatter and small talk, but today was different. Today, there was something new.

Greig stood in the ration queue, trying to ignore the excited whispers that surrounded him. He knew that Malia wouldn't have wasted any time, but even still he was surprised by just how quickly news had spread.

"You're sure they can leave?"

"Well, they got here didn't they? No one else has before."

"Has anyone even seen them?"

"Greig has."

Greig closed his eyes and sighed deeply, ruffling his receding hair. Within seconds, he was swamped by people, some even giving up their prized place in the queue, desperate to find out more.

"Who are they? What do they look like?"

"How did they get here?"

"What did they say to you? Are they from Earth?"

"Where are they now?"

"I don't know." Greig shouted. "I just ran in to them. It could have been any of us."

"But it wasn't." Came a gruff voice from the crowd, one Greig recognised immediately. "Convenient it was you, wasn't it? Always getting the special treatment."

"Look, Gervin." Greig snapped, as the heavyset man pushed his way through the other residents. "I didn't ask for any of this. I just bumped in to them. They said they could leave, then they were taken away. That's all I know. They weren't even planning to take us with them."

"We could change their mind." Gervin insisted.

"Not if their locked up." Another voice added. "We're just where we started."

"Then we break them out." Gervin shrugged. "That'll show the Gov'nor, won't it."

"Enough!" Tromas barked nervously, trying to use his best assertive voice. "Back to the queue. You all know the system." He raised his weapon in front of his body, facing Gervin. The man, with chins matching his overflowing belly, simply scoffed at the young officer.

"We all know you can't use that thing, Tromas." He sneered, stepping aside. "Don't know if you've heard, but things'll be changing round here pretty soon."

"Whatever you say Gervin." Tromas replied, his confidence rising now that the giant of a man had turned away. Slowly, he dispersed the small crowd, returning them back to the queue. Once the ruckus had died down, he turned to Greig apologetically.

"I saw the Governor." He said sadly. "And as much Gervin might like to think it, the system won't be changing any time soon."

Greigs' heart sank. He knew Tromas would have done his best for them, but that didn't stop him being angry. All he could think of was his wife, back in their quarters, struggling to even get out of bed because she didn't have enough energy.

"Maybe he's right." Grieg snapped, as the queue moved in front of him. He stood still for a moment, staring Tromas straight in the eye. "Maybe things do need to change." He turned coldly away from the officer, and followed the queue towards the ration desk.

Tromas sad nothing, but just looked after Greig sadly. He'd tried his best, but there was no convincing the Governor. He was frustrated too, frustrated that he couldn't do anything for these people, people he'd come to think of as friends, despite what the Governor would have to say about it. Deep down, he knew that Greig, and Gervin, were right. Something had to change.

But what exactly, didn't bare thinking about.

XXXX

"I wonder, Doctor," Steven started, "through all of time and space, just how many prison cells you've found yourself in?"

"My dear boy." The Doctor replied, glancing to his companion whilst examining the heavy metal door. "Are you going to stand around asking ridiculous questions, or are you going to help me find a way out, hm?"

Steven shot a sideways look towards the only exit and scoffed.

"There's no way we're getting through that."

The Doctor stepped closer to him, and whispered into his ear.

"In that case, just stand in the corner and keep quiet, hm? No need to talk, particularly about who we are and where we come from. Yes? Yes?"

Steven took a step back, processing what the Doctor had just said. For all intents and purposes 'shut up'. If it had been anyone but the Doctor, he certainly wouldn't have stood for it. In fact, if it was anyone else, they may have found themselves on the receiving end of a well aimed fist. It was then he realised just how much he trusted the Doctor. If he wanted him to be quiet, he must have had a good reason.

"You saw the amount of cells they have, didn't you?" The Doctor questioned in a hushed tone. "The doors were open, so they must be empty. If that's the case, why put us in the same cell, hm? Hm?"

Stevens' eyes widened with realisation, as he spotted the camera in the top corner of the room.

"To get us to talk!"

"Yes, my boy." The Doctor nodded, turning his attention back to the door. "So let's not give them what they want, shall we?"

XXXX

The Governor frowned with concern as he watched the two monitor outputs he had streamed to the screen on his desk. On the left, he watched the old man, the Doctor, as he'd identified himself, prodding aimlessly at the cell door, whilst the other intruder, Steven, simply stood in the corner. The pair had exchanged a few words earlier, but not loud enough to be picked up by the microphones. Could it be, he pondered, that they had worked out his plan; to discover more about the strangers by simply just letting them talk.

The other screen, however, was much more worrying. A crowd had gathered in the canteen, forming around Greig. Fortunately, the surveillance equipment here was much more fit for purpose than that in the cells. The Governor had always presumed that the Brig was only ever constructed as a formality. After all, the conditioning that each of the residents was put under had been specifically designed to help keep them in line, by suppressing their memories of their former lives.

Ethically, the Governor knew it was rocky, and in any other circumstance he'd have fought tooth and nail against any regime proposing such a thing. However, in this case, the conditioning was the best option; the lesser of two evils.

As the events unfolded on the screen, the surveillance software dictated the conversation, scrolling subtitles across the bottom of the picture. Half an eye on the screen, the Governor turned to a smaller monitor to his right, searching the colony records. Despite the years he'd spent watching over the inhabitants, he'd never bothered to look up too much about most of them. Now, he thought, may be a good time.

RESIDENT 81

DESIGNATED 'GERVIN'

AGE 38

PREVIOUS OCCUPATION ENTERTAINMENT SECURITY OPERATIVE

The Governor frowned again. Despite the wordy title, he knew exactly what that meant, Gervin had been a bouncer, presumably in some sort of night club. It would fit his appearance, he thought, but it wasn't good news. Whilst the conditioning wiped an individuals memories, it couldn't erase their instincts, their natural reactions. He'd seen that when Eeva's pregnancy had been announced, the former nurses showing their compassion and understanding, the more cunning seeing how it could benefit them.

He moved on, searching for some of the other residents that had been involved in the disturbance. The first file he pulled up was an older man, still with a head of blonde hair.

RESIDENT 149

DESIGNATED NIVEL

AGE 47

PREVIOUS OCCUPATION LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER

Next, he looked up the woman known as Malia. Although she hadn't been part of the scene in the ration queue, he'd seen her talking to everyone she saw today, spreading the news about their visitors.

RESIDENT 117

DESIGNATED MALIA

AGE 36

PREVIOUS OCCUPATION PREACHER

The Governor shook his head, rubbing a hand across his mouth. That cemented it; he had to do something. If some of the residents rebelled, and one of their number included an ex-police officer, not to mention a ex-preacher spreading the word, his staff wouldn't stand a chance. Gervin had been right about Tromas, he wouldn't have fired his weapon, in fact the Governor doubted he even knew how any more. The same went for the rest of his officers; they had been recruited so quickly, there had barely been time for training, let alone any follow up sessions. From day one, all of their time had been dedicated to the day to day running of the station. He knew his team were capable, they could keep the whole colony running without him if needed, but in a combat situation, and out numbered?

They didn't stand a chance.


	3. Chapter 3- Appeasement

"So we just wait for them to get bored?" Steven moaned, sat in the corner of the dank cell sulkily.  
"Well, my boy," The Doctor smiled thinly at his companion, "seeing as the door is most clearly locked, I don't think we have much choice, much choice at all, do you? Hmm?"  
"Hold on!" Steven jumped to his feet. "Doctor, what about your ring?"  
"My ring?" The Doctor looked across to Steven, a puzzled look on his face. "Is now really the time to admire my jewellery?" He gazed at the large black stone on his finger. "Though it is quite my favourite. I remember when I first got it. Amusing story, yes, most amusing." He chuckled to himself, ready to recall the anecdote, before Steven interrupted him.  
"Although I'm sure it's very nice, I more meant that we could use it to get out of here!"  
"And how would you suggest we do that, my dear boy? Use it to bribe the guards? No, that's not an option, not an option at all."  
"No!" Steven replied exasperated. "You've used it to unlock the TARDIS doors before, cant you use it here? On the cell?"  
"Ah, I see, I see." The Doctor nodded in understanding. "Good thought my boy, very good indeed, but the stone is specially tuned to the frequency of my Ship, it won't work on just any door you see." He looked down at the stone again thoughtfully. "Although it has been becoming weaker recently, yes, I do wonder, do wonder just how long it will remain useful."  
"Then what do we do?" Steven slumped back in to the corner, frustrated. "We really do just have to sit here and wait?"  
"Patience, my boy, is a virtue, yes a virtue indeed." The Doctor said with a sly smile, clutching at his lapel. "Although I am sure we won't have to wait to long now."  
"What do you mean? How can you be so sure?"  
The Doctor sighed deeply, walking over to Steven before bending down, with a groan, and whispering in to his ear.  
"From what we saw of this civilisation, it would appear they have not seen anyone, or anything, new for quite some time."  
"So?" Steven snapped. "It doesn't look like they are too keen on anything new, judging by what they've done with us."  
"Not the authorities, no, of course not. But the rest of the civilisation?" He continued in a hushed tone. "A different story, yes quite a different story indeed."  
"You mean they'll start to rebel?" Steven nodded slowly. "Of course, the way that Greig fellow reacted when you said we could leave. We've given them hope, something to rebel for."  
"Indeed." The Doctor grinned. "And if that is the case, what do you think they would do next, hm?"  
"Try and get us out!"  
"Yes my boy." The Doctor whispered gleefully. "And that, yes that is what we are waiting for."

XXXX

"That's their ship?" Gervin grunted, as he poked his large head around the corner of the corridor.  
"I know we're a little out of touch," Nivel added, screwing up his narrow eyes, "but it's not like any ship I recall." He paused. "Although we all know our memories aren't the most reliable."  
"It arrived when they did." Greig shrugged, starting to regret becoming involved with this pair. "Like I said, that's all I know."  
"I don't reckon they'd be guarding it if it wasn't important." Gervin added, gesturing to the two officers flanking the strange blue box. "Police box?' He read the sign above the door, before turning to Nivel. "Police? Ring any bells?"  
"Only the word." Nivel bit his lip, and closed his eyes, trying to remember. Like them all, he occasionally had flashes, small clues to his old life. Although he couldn't be sure, he'd long suspected his involvement in law enforcement, before Lasel. He tried to concentrate, but couldn't recall anything more, particularly nothing relating to a blue box like spaceship.

"So, I'll leave you to it then." Greig said quietly, desperate to get back to Eeva. "Good luck, boys." He went to leave, but felt a strong arm grip his wrist.  
"Oh, no." Gervin grinned. "You're not going nowhere. We'll need every man we can get." He looked to Nivel with a mocking smile. "But in this case Greig, you'll do too."  
Greig looked to the thick fingers gripping his hand, before giving a resigning sigh and looking to the floor.  
"We'll need a distraction." Nivel pondered. "I think we can take them both, Gervin."  
"Too right." The beast of a man grunted. "No problem."  
"Then I guess I'm the bait." Greig sighed.  
"Just think of it as a special mission." Gervin sneered, his cheeks puffing out, making his resemble an ugly bald hamster. "You should be used to that."  
Greig considered arguing, but decided against it. "Fine."  
"On three then." Nivel confirmed. Greig kept it to himself, but did wonder if Gervin could even count that far.  
"One."  
Grieg braced himself against the corner, ready to run out, still not quite sure what he was going to do.  
"Two."  
It was too late for a plan now though, he was just going to have to go. He held his breath, waiting for the signal to go.

But it never came.

Instead, the voice of the Governor filled the corridors, via the loud speakers.

"All residents and staff of Lasel are to report to the Auditorium immediately. I have an important announcement to make regarding," there was a pause, as if the man was almost choking on his own words, "regarding a change to the system."

XXXX

"And, it appears," the Doctor chuckled, the sound reverberating around the cell, "that it has begun, yes, it has begun."  
"A change?" Steven questioned. "Sounds like he's trying to appease them to me."  
"Yes my boy, yes indeed. But will that be enough, hm? Hm?"  
"So your counting on them trying to overthrow their leaders, just to get us out? That's just not right, Doctor."  
"Nonsense my boy." The Doctor huffed. "You have seen how these people live, have you not? A rebellion would happen one way or another, I have no doubt. We were merely the catalysts, the butterfly that flapped its wings as it were."  
"But what if we weren't? What if we never landed here?"  
"Ah, but we did my boy, but we did. There's no undoing that now, so don't worry yourself about it, hm."  
'But we don't know what's going to happen Doctor!" He exclaimed. "We don't know what effect this 'rebellion', if it happens, will have on these people."  
"No, no we do not." The Doctor agreed. "But the events are very much set in motion now, if we like it or not. All we can do is see how they play out."

XXXX

The Auditorium sat towards the centre of the larger spheres that made up the station, dubbed by the staff as the 'Habitation Sphere'. Despite the name, however, the construct housed much more than living quarters. Although all of the systems were controlled from the smaller 'Government Sphere', everything, from power and life support systems to food and clothing supplies were housed in the Habitation Sphere. No one, apart from the Governor really knew why, but at the same time they hadn't put too much thought in to it.

As he sat in the middle of the large room, seats towering above him, filled with the inhabitants of the Colony, the Governor knew that there was no going back now. All eyes were on him now, even those of his staff who sat behind him. That's how he'd always seen them; his staff. They'd been chosen to serve him, his workforce to keep the Colony, and the society he had been tasked to form, going indefinitely. The residents, however, thought otherwise. Ever since the beginning, they'd referred to the 'Government', an assumption of a group of people running things, making decisions together.

That approach, however, had never been an option. Once he had been fully briefed, the Governor had decided that no one else must know to whole truth behind the Colony, why exactly it was needed. Hence, with his staff only knowing what they needed to, he was the only one who could make the informed decisions that needed to be made for the good of everyone.

They were decisions that he'd stuck too since the beginning. It was the only way, he decided, to keep control. Each resident was briefed upon their awakening, each of the rules being clearly stated, and they had not changed in the slightest. The only exception, of course, was allowing Greig and Eeva to commune, to bring a new life on to the station.

Having read through the records and briefing documents on the station computers thoroughly, the Governor had made the hard decision to allow a lapse in the rules, on the chance that it may lead to something better; to some hope, not just for the couple, but to all their peers, the staff and, of course, the Governor himself. The plan was a deeply scientific one, and not one he pretended to understand, but fortunately he didn't have to; the lab computers did all that for him. He knew all he needed to, and that was good enough for him.

He sighed as he stood to his feet, trying to ignore the two hundred eyes all peering down on him expectantly. Why couldn't it have lasted just a few more months, he thought to himself. That's all he would have needed, once the child had been born he could have explained everything and start to plan for the future. But then the strangers arrived, offering something new; offering hope.

"Citizens." He addressed his audience nervously. "As you know, there have been some changes on Lasel recently, some of which I hope will improve your lives in the future." He heard the combined intake of breath from the seats around him. "However, regretfully, it is not yet time for those changes to be rolled out entirely." There was a rise of descent around him. "But we are getting closer. With each passing day, we get closer to change. I," he corrected himself, "we do, however, appreciate your patience and acceptance of the rules of Lasel up until now. That is why I have decided it is time for a small change, a sign, I hope, of things to come."

There was a buzz of excitement in the air, not just from the citizens, but the staff too. Each one kept their dignified position, sitting up straight behind the Governor, but inside each one of them was bristling with intrigue, excitement and, in varying degrees, fear. They all knew their place, and kept their faith in their Governor, but this was the first time they'd seen him address the population like this. The decisions regarding Greig and Eeva had been made vey privately, the community finding out via word of mouth.

"Starting with immediate effect," the Governor continued, "each individual will be granted an additional one and a half per cent of their weekly rations." He gave a smile, stepping back to observe his audience.

There was silence.

Tromas wiped his brow nervously. He wasn't sure what the change was going to be, but even he had expected more. He could see everyone turning to each other, muttering under their breath as the Governor remained still, evidently expecting gratitude.

"That's it?" Gervin shouted from his seat, finally breaking the silence. "Nothing else?"  
"Hardly worth bothering." Another voice agreed.  
"All this fuss for another few beans and drops of water?"  
"What about them?" A female voice added. "The strangers?"  
"And their box!" Gervin bellowed. "Their ship!"  
"Silence!" The Governor shouted, his staff getting to their feet, hands on weapons. "We are investigating the intruders, but it appears that their ship is next to useless to us."  
"Rubbish!" Nivel yelled. "You know they can leave. And you think you can distract us with a few more beans?"  
"Remain seated!" The Govenor roared, as the residents started to stand, all shouting their grievances at him. "If you cannot appreciate this gesture, then it will be revoked."  
"I'll tell you where you can shove your gesture!"  
By now, the guards had began to approach the seating area, attempting to cut off the ring leaders.  
"We also have no proof that the strangers can leave. We have been unable to access their ship." He continued, trying to be heard over the noise.  
"Then we need them to let us in, don't we?" Gervin barked, turning to Nivel and the people surrounding him. "What do we say boys? Release the strangers?"  
"Release the strangers!" The crowd started, as Gervin started to climb over the seats in front of him, towards the middle of the room. "Release the strangers!"

Still in her seat, Eeva gripped Greigs' hand tightly, looking on to his eyes. She'd have been happy with the extra one and a half per cent.  
"Don't." She mouthed to him, pleading. "Don't."  
He looked back at her, then to the escalating scene around them, guards being knocked to the floor by the sheer power of numbers, the Governor rushing towards the back of the room.  
"I have to." He said, apologetically. "If it means we can leave this place." He put a hand on her swollen stomach. "All three of us." He kissed her gently on the forehead, getting to his feet. "Get back to safety." He instructed her, gesturing to a clear path behind them. "I'll see you soon." Not waiting for an answer, he bounded over the seat in front, joining the chanting. "Release the strangers!"


	4. Chapter 4- Uprising

"Sounds like its started." Steven mumbled, listening to the sounds of chaos heading towards them.  
"Just as I thought, yes." The Doctor said thoughtfully. "They'll want us to take them with us you know." He added.  
"We can't though, can we Doctor?" Steven replied, a hint of anger in his voice. "They were right. We've offered them hope without any intent of delivering it."  
"If i could could take them back to where they came from I would. Yes, I would. But I can't, Steven. The TARDIS won't let me, not yet."  
"That doesn't make it any less wrong." Steven snapped, jumping to his feet. "Just because we would, but can't, doesn't make it right, it doesn't make us good men."  
The Doctor put a calming arm around his companions' shoulder.  
"No, indeed it does not, but the fact you would, that you would take them back if we could, that Steven, that is what makes you a good man, my boy."

Steven didn't reply, instead letting the Doctors' words sink in. He'd seen so many different sides of the old man during their travels, some brilliant and others he didn't always agree with. However, despite this, Steven trusted the Doctor implicitly, much more so than anyone he'd ever known. He felt lucky enough to have known some great men in his time, commanders of battle cruisers and admirals of fleets, however, none of them could compare to the Doctor.

And here he was, the one man in the Universe that Steven thought of in the highest regard, calling him a good man. People had told him that before, but Steven had never quite believed it, always able to find a reason to disagree. This time, however, he couldn't argue, not with the Doctor. If the Doctor thought Steven Taylor was a good man, he was going to have to prove it.

XXXX

The Governor watched the read out on his own personal elevator nervously, as it drew closer to his office. He knew the mob of rebels wouldn't be far behind, interspersed with his own men all trying to stop them. He'd looked back, just before stepping in the lift, and seen some of the chaos. Blue uniforms pulling at beige, but being battered away easily. There hadn't really been the time to count, but he guessed that maybe half of the population had turned against them.

He'd known, of course, that his offer was an insulting one, but it was never intended to be accepted. No, his decision would have much deeper consequences, and now he had put the first wheel in to motion, he had to continue on the path he had started.

He'd barely been able to watch as the residents took their frustrations out on his staff, over powering them with numbers alone. Fortunately, for everyone, not a shot had been fired, by either side. It was more or less accepted that the laser rifles were more a threat than anything, a symbol of the control the staff had over the residents. The fact that they had never been used, along with any over type of violence, just demonstrated that, despite the hierarchy that was in place, they were all in this together.

The Governor, the staff, the citizens; they all made up the Colony of Lasel.

For now.

XXXX

"Grieg!" Go and get the strangers out!" Gervin ordered, as they passed through the sliding doors to the Government Sphere. "Take these." He slung a set of card keys, taken from a guard during the struggle, to Grieg, who caught them clumsily. Well go on then!" The larger man barked again. "They'll catch up soon."  
"And we need to get to the Governors' office before we can leave." Nivel explained, clutching a laser rifle that he had acquired. "That's where he'll be heading, and we'll need him as a prisoner. Only way to keep the guards under control."  
"Fine." Grieg sighed, looking round before spotting the sign to the Brig. "Meet you at the blue box?"  
"You'd better had." Gervin half-threatened. "Don't mess this up."

Grieg ignored his, running towards the Brig as he heard the rest of the rebelling population streaming towards the entrance to the sphere, various guards being dragged with them, others still pursuing, desperately trying to hold some ground. He just hoped no one went too far, a revolution was one thing, killing was quite another.

He thundered down the empty corridor, past all of the empty doors, grasping the card keys tightly. Grieg tried to concentrate on the task at hand, of freeing Steven and the Doctor. However, he couldn't help but think of Eeva, and their unborn child, silently preying that whatever happened today, they would still have a future together.

XXXX

"Get back to Habitation." Tromas ordered the small group of citizens, those who had straggled behind the rising mob, keen to leave them too it. Unsure of what to do, they had gathered in a nearby corridor. He knew his colleagues would have frowned upon it, on him holding back rather than rushing to the Government Sphere with them, but Tromas knew what he had to do. His duty was to keep the entire population safe; and that's just what he was doing.

"And what are you going to do if we don't?" Malia said brashly, pushing her rotund frame out of the crowd.  
Tromas looked straight at her.  
"Nothing."  
"Hah! Then we'll do what we want!"  
"Go ahead." Tromas shrugged. "There are two options I can see for you," he raised his voice, "for all of you. You either go back to Habitation and wait this out, or you go and join the rest of them, in whatever they have planned. If they have a plan that is." He ignored the muttering in the crowd. "I might wear this," he gestured to his uniform, "but when it comes down to it, I was plucked from my old life just as you were. I don't do this because I want to, you know. I'm not a jailer, a guard, a hero.I'm just trying to live my life, the same as you. And," he lowered his voice again, "I know where I'd rather be right now."  
"Rubbish!" A middle aged man said, over the low mumbling of the rest of the crowd. "He just wants us to do as he says to help his lot out! What's he doing here anyway? The coward!"  
"Oh hush Aleca." Malia snapped. "It is Tromas after all."  
"So?" Aleca scoffed. "He's still a coward."  
"If he's a coward for being here," Eeva said weakly, "then what are you? Why aren't you up there with the rest?"  
Aleca didn't respond, instead turning away to hide his embarrassment and heading towards the living quarters. Malia followed, along with a few others, more and more individuals slowly following his lead.

Tromas breathed a sigh of relief, running his hand through his hair. He wasn't sure that was going to have worked. Although his peers, and the Governor, didn't value it, Tromas had always been proud of his relationship with the citizens. He had always taken time to listen to them, to get to know them, if they could remember anything. It seemed, finally, his work had paid off.

"He's gone with them." Tromas looked around, to see Eeva, hand on her stomach, looking at him with deep, sad eyes. She'd always been so pretty, so vibrant, but the weight of worry bought a sense of tiredness to her face that Tromas didn't recognise.  
"Grieg?" He said, not too surprised, casting his mind back to their confrontation in the canteen. "I'm sure he'll be fine. He's sensible, your husband."  
"Find him?" She pleaded. "There's something not right here. Who knows what the Governor is going to do."  
"Of course." Tromas nodded reassuringly, gesturing for her to follow the others. "Don't worry, I'll find him."

XXXX

"So what do we do if we do get out of here, Doctor?" Steven asked, expecting their rescue to have happened by now.  
"Well my boy, we get back to the Ship of course. Yes, we get back and we leave, we let history run its course."  
"You mean we leave them to it?" He questioned. "We just go and hope for the best?"  
"What else would you have us do, hm? We could help them, yes, we could help, but would it really be help in the long run, hm?"  
"What do you mean?" As much as he admired and trusted the Doctor, Steven could still become unbelievably frustrated with the old man. "For once, Doctor, will you please just say what you mean?"  
"Think my dear boy, think!" The Doctor encouraged. "We cannot stay here forever, we have to leave at some point. Yes, at some point they must survive on their own. If we help them now, what's to say they won't become dependant on us, hm? And when we leave, then what, then what becomes of them then? No, we must leave as soon as we can my boy."

Steven turned away from the Doctor. As much as he wanted to argue to make a point, he knew deep down that the Doctor was right. They had the technology here, the staff had the knowledge to use it, presuming they were kept alive. As much as his heart told him that they had to help in the aftermath of the revolution, his head was starting to agree with the Doctor.

"Of course," Steven broke the silence, "all of this is irrelevant if they don't get us out."  
"Patience, Steven, patience." The Doctor chuckled, holding a hand to his right ear. "One." Steven cocked his head, listening intently. "Two." There it was, a footstep outside the cell. "Three!"

No sooner as the words had left the Doctors' lips, had the door swung open, revealing a shaky looking Grieg, key card in his hand.

"My dear fellow!" The Doctor exclaimed, not giving their rescuer a chance to speak before shaking his hand briefly and pushing past him. "We were beginning to think you'd forgotten about us!" He laughed gently, beconing for Steven to follow him.  
"Yeah, thanks." Steven shrugged, as Grieg stood, apparently dumbfounded.  
"Er, erm, you're coming with me." He finally stuttered. "Back to your ship." He glared at them, trying to be as intimidating as he could. "No arguments."  
"Arguments?" The Doctor questioned, already partway down the prison corridor. "No, my boy, no arguments from us. Back to the ship it is!"  
"No arguments with you, anyway." Steven muttered under his breath, looking over his shoulder to see the nervous Grieg tottering after them. He doubted the man had ever been in a fight in his life. Not that it was a bad thing, of course.

As he trailed behind the two men who were supposed to be his prisoners, of sorts, Grieg was just glad Eeva hadn't seem him. Aside from opening the door, he hadn't done anything at all. Even up until now, he'd just followed the crowd. Prior to today, there had been no reason to be courageous or heroic but given the chance, he'd failed. How was he going to be a good husband, or father, if he couldn't stand up for himself, if no one would ever listen to him.

"Come on!" Steven shouted back to him, as he and the Doctor stepped out of the main entrance to the Brig. "Are we going back to the TARDIS or not?"  
Grieg knew this was the time to make a decision, was he going to go back, do as he was ordered, or was he going to make his own choice, and be part of the revolution. To make a difference.  
"You are." He finally said, firmly. "Now go."  
"No need to raise your voice my boy, no need at all." The Doctor grumped at him, affronted. "We are on our way, as should you be."  
"I'm no coward."  
"No one said you were!" Steven defended the Doctor.  
"My boy, it's not cowardly to avoid danger when you can, no, no, that's intelligence of the highest order." He paused. "And there's not just yourself to think about, is there, hm?"  
"I'm doing this for them." Grieg snapped. "What's the point in Eeva having a husband if he's a coward."  
"More point than her having one who's dead, I'd say, wouldn't you?" The Doctor replied gently.  
"Doctor." Steven urged. "The TARDIS."  
"Go!" Grieg shouted. "I'll prove I'm not a coward, I'm not useless. This is our fight. So go!"  
"As you wish." The Doctor answered, heading out of the large sliding doors that separated the two spheres. "Come along Steven."  
The young man turned, giving Grieg a parting look, before turning back to follow the Doctor.

Both the Doctor and Steven grumbled loudly as a figure dashed around the corner, giving them a quick look before turning his attention fully on to Grieg.

"Tromas." Grieg sighed. "What did he want?"

XXXX

"Report." The Governor demanded from his office. The screens around him showed various camera feeds from around the station, mainly the Government Sphere.  
"The upper sphere has been breached." The reply came back over the radio. "Almost one hundred citizens have entered, many of our number have been held captive."  
"And all staff are accounted for?"  
"All but on are in the upper sphere." The voice confirmed.  
"I'm by the doors." Tromas' voice came over the radio.  
"Get on this side, Tromas." The Governor demanded. "Now."

He cut the radio off, reaching under the desk with his right hand. After a few moments of fiddling, he found what he was looking for; a small button recessed in to the wood of his old fashioned desk. The Governor looked to the picture of the farmhouse with a sigh, as it slid from its' position on the wall, moving to the right, revealing a panel underneath.

A panel he'd always hoped he would never have to use.

XXXX

"You should go back, Grieg." Tromas said gently, approaching him slowly. "Eeva needs you. Your baby needs you."  
"She used to." Grieg sighed. "But things will be different now. We were all the same, before. There was nothing to judge each other one, no past, just the here and now."  
"That won't change." Tromas tried to reassure him. "It'll be no different."  
"It will." Grieg insisted. "The ones that made it all happen, they'll be the heroes. I'll be nothing. Just a man."  
"What's wrong with that?" Tromas snapped. "It's all I've ever been. Do you know how happy you make her?" He asked, but not giving Grieg a chance to answer. "She's having your child, Grieg. A gift that no one else on this station can have. You think she'll feel any different because you kept out of danger?"  
"You're right." Grieg said finally, stepping forward towards the large separating doors, much to the guards relief.

Until, however, the doors began to hiss and start to move.

XXXX

"Sir!" An urgent voice came across the radio. "A group of rebels have made it to your office complex. You have minutes until they get to you."  
"That will be enough." The Governor sighed, looking at the two buttons on the wall. He hovered a hand over the first one, but hesitated.

Everything was in place, the rebels, his staff, himself, all present in the upper sphere. Things had been fine, until this Doctor and his friend had arrived. With only a glimmer of hope, the population had reached for the stars; now they had the idea that they could leave they wouldn't give up on it, not whilst there was still a chance. The Governor had seen the so-called 'ship' that the Doctor had supposedly arrived in; there was no way he would be able to get anyone off of the station in that.

No, the only people who could possibly get any one back home, back to Earth, was the Governor or his staff. Now the ambition was there, there was no way the group of gang leaders would stop fighting for their freedom; a freedom they couldn't possibly have.

No, he thought, as his hand moved towards the button once more. This was the only way.

Finally, he pushed it firmly, a message appearing on his monitor.

UPPER SPHERE JETTISON INITIATED

XXXX

"Grieg!" Tromas yelled as the doors slammed closed in front of him, much faster than he had ever seen them move before. Seconds later, another set of doors fell from the ceiling, these ones much thicked.  
"Tromas!" Grieg could barely hear him through the two sets of doors.  
"Sir!" Tromas shouted in his his headset. "The Upper Sphere has been sealed off!"  
There was silence from the radio, but a rumbling around him. It was a sensation he hadn't felt for a long time. Not since he'd been transported to Lasel from Earth, the last time he'd been on a ship.  
"No!" He shouted, placing a hand on the thick blast door and feeling the vibrations. "Grieg!" He shouted desperatly, hoping he could still hear him. "That's engines. I think the Spheres' are separating."  
"Look after her!" Grieg's voice was barely audible now. "Look after them."

XXXX

"What are you doing 'Sir'?" Gervin mocked loudly from outside the Governors' reinforced door. "Give it up, it's over."  
"Yes." The Governor replied nonchalantly. "It is." He reached for the second button on the wall. "But not in the way you think."

XXXX

The seconds seemed to last for hours as Tromas' voice became impossible to hear. He'd only been a footstep away from stepping back in to the Habitation Sphere. If only he hadn't been so proud, he berated himself. If only he'd have listened to the Doctor when he had the chance. He didn't quite know what was happening, but something told him that it was over.

In those few moments, the realisation hit him; he wasn't going to see Eeva again. And he would never see his child.

XXXX

Despite the banging on the door, all the Governor could hear was the blood pumping through his head. There was no going back now. When he had taken on the job, he'd accepted that it was a one way trip, the job that he would end his life doing, one way or another. He'd taken on the responsibility and it was one he was going to see through.

He'd left it long enough; the upper sphere should have been far enough away from the lower by now

As he pressed the second button, he knew he'd done it, fulfilled his duty. Moments later the monitor confirmed it.

UPPER SPHERE SELF DESTRUCT INITIATED

He had given up his life for this job.  
He had even started to forget his real name.  
He had made decisions he wasn't proud of.  
But he had done what he had set out to do all that time ago.  
He had made sure the Earth was safe from the inhabitants of Lasel.

XXXX

Moments later the entire colony shook with the force of the blast. Steven and the Doctor fell to the floor suddenly, the citizens stumbled to try and keep their balance and Tromas was thrown away from the thick metal doors. From the outside, it would have looked as if someone had thrown a fist through the head off the metal snowman, the metal ball ripped to shreds by explosions and flame.


	5. Chapter 5- Aftermath

"Doctor?" Steven groaned, climbing to his feet and massaging his left shoulder. It seemed that must have landed on it harder then he'd thought. "Are you ok?" He turned his attention to the Doctor, attempting to help his friend to his feet.  
"Yes, yes my boy, don't fuss." The Doctor grumbled, struggling from the floor and brushing himself off before regaining his usual dignified posture, clasping his lapels. "Just a fall, that's all.' He nodded. "But that was quite a tremor, yes, quite a tremor indeed."  
"A tremor?" Steven protested. "On a space station?"  
"You know what I mean, my boy. No need for pedantry, hm?"  
"Sorry Doctor." Steven shrugged. "But what was it?"  
"The Upper Sphere." Tromas gasped, staggering down the corridor towards them. "It's gone."  
"Gone?" Steven asked, surprised. "How can it be gone?"  
"Detached, I presume." The Doctor pondered.  
"No." Tromas shook his head, holding up a small device, which consisted mainly of a screen. "It's gone completely. Destroyed."  
"So that's what that was? The fall out from the explosion?" Steven asked, beginning to piece it together.  
"Of course, my boy, of course." The Doctor nodded, turning his attention to the blue uniformed guard. "And who are you, my fellow?"  
"Tromas." He stated, staring back to the blast doors, where the upper sphere had been mere minutes ago. "It's just me now."  
"What do you mean?" Steven questioned.  
"The Governor, the rest of the crew." He paused. "The rebels. They were all in that section. All gone."  
"Ah, I see, I see." The Doctor said, looking to the floor. "Most regrettable, yes, most regrettable indeed."  
"And Greig." Steven said sadly. "He was still on that side, wasn't he?"  
Tromas didn't reply, just avoided the mans' gaze and nodded solemnly.  
"But why?" Steven insisted. "Who would do such a thing?"  
"The Governor." Tromas replied, almost as if in a trance. "He's the only one who could. He wanted us all in the sphere." He paused, realisation hitting him. "It must have been the only way." He continued. "To make sure the rebels couldn't take control. Couldn't force him to take them back ho- to Earth."  
"But why?" Steven protested. "Why can't they leave?"  
"Not just them." Tromas explained. "We, I, can't either."  
"And why not, my boy? There must be a reason, hm?" The Doctor inquired, calmly.  
"I don't know." Tromas admitted, biting his lip. "Only the Governor knew."  
"That's ridiculous." Steven scoffed. "There must be a reason."  
The Doctor noticed the affronted look on the young officers' face.  
"Yes, yes, of course there is my boy, but that doesn't matter right now." He turned to Tromas. "Now young man, perhaps we should get back, back to the survivors, hm? They'll need to know what's happened, after all."  
"Yes." Tromas said quietly, thinking of what was coming next. "We'll need to tell them."

Easier said than done, he thought. How could he face Eeva in the eye, let alone tell her that her what had happened. How could he tell her that Grieg was dead and that he had failed to save him?

XXXX

"What the hell was that?" Aleca demanded as the shaking died down. He looked around the Canteen, where everyone who hadn't followed the mob had congregated. Looking around, it certainly seemed like the majority of the men had followed Gervin, leaving mostly the women of the colony and the men who hadn't been brave enough to follow. Including, he admitted, himself.  
"How should we know." Malia, snapped at him, with a look of contempt he'd never seen from her before. "Here, take this." She thrust a small handheld device at him. "I found this on the way here, one of them must've dropped it. Make yourself useful and see if you can find anything."  
Aleca took the device from her, and watched as she stomped away. He didn't need to be treated like this, he thought to himself. If he was going to risk breaking the law for a woman, it might as well be for one who didn't treat him like something from the bottom of her shoe.

He looked over to Eeva, Malia sitting down next to her. Everyone had thought she and Grieg were so lucky, being allowed to marry, but from where he stood now, Aleca felt like the lucky one. After all, he was free, there was nothing tying him to Malia. If he wanted too, he could just cut her loose. He felt sure that one of these other women would welcome his affection.

Malia sat with her arm around Eeva, trying to reassure her. Her friend had never been the most emotionally stable, but the surge of hormones charging around her body made it even worse. She didn't pretend to understand the medical side of things, that was Karies' job. Or, at least, everyone assumed it was. She seemed to have a natural affinity for caring, and an instinct for all things medical. It was obvious to everyone that her previous life must have involved health care in one way or another, so she'd been quickly accepted as the unofficial nurse of the Colony. The little she could remember had quickly proved to be more than the staffs' training had given them, and even the Governor had taken to enlisting her help recently. Of course, once news of Eevas' pregnancy had spread, there was no question as to who would be taking care of her; much to the relief of the all male staff.

"Try not to worry." Karie said kindly, walking over to the small bench on which the women were sat. She was an older woman, one of the oldest on the Colony, a fact made obvious by her greying hair. "Easier said then done, I know." She added with a smile.  
"Where is he?" Eeva fretted. "Tromas said he'd bring him back."  
"Aleca!" Malia demanded, remaining in her seat. "Can you find Grieg on that thing? Or Tromas?"  
"Give me a chance." The man complained, jabbing at the touch screen with frustration. "I think there's something wrong with it." Malia rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to Eeva.

"Let me take a look." Came a voice from over Alecas' shoulder. "Maybe I can fix it."  
"I'm sure you can Troby." Aleca muttered, trying to ignore the smug look on the mans face as his pushed his glassed up his nose, before grasping the device. "It's only showing the Habitation Sphere." He explained.  
"So I see." Troby replied, his attention fully on the screen. "But there's nothing wrong with it."  
"Of course there is." Aleca scoffed.  
"No." Troby shook his head frantically, lowering his voice. "It's showing a full readout of the colony. This is all there is. The Upper Sphere has gone."  
"How can it be be gone?" Aleca almost shouted, prompting a glare from the younger man. It was too late, however, as he'd already started to draw the attention of the rest of the room.  
"What's gone?"  
"What are you talking about?"  
"Show me that!"

Troby held the device tightly to his chest, stepping back.  
"Everyone, keep calm." He said, glaring at Aleca again. "If this readout is right, the Government Sphere has gone."  
Eeva jumped to her feet, both Malia and Karie fussing over her.  
"What do you mean gone?" She demanded. "Where's Grieg?"  
"I can't see him." Troby replied softly, stroking his chin. "Or anyone else. They've all vanished from the system, no trace."  
"No." Eeva shook her head, dashing towards him. "That's not possible."  
Troby stepped back, holding the device away from her.  
"I'm sorry, Eeva. It is."  
"How?" She started to sob.  
"Troby." Malia demanded, putting an arm around Eevas' shoulder, ignoring Aleca. "What does this all mean? How can the Sphere be gone?"

"It's been destroyed, my dear." The Doctor answered, striding in to the room, flanked by Steven and Tromas. "By your Governor, no less."  
"No!" Eeva shouted at him. "You're lying!"  
"He's not." Steven added kindly. "It's the truth."  
"Tromas." Aleca demanded. "Speak up. What happened."  
"Just what they said." The officer replied, his eyes firmly on the ground. "The Governor made sure everyone was in the Sphere, staff and citizens alike, then detached it." He paused. "Before activating the self destruct."  
"But Grieg." Eeva shouted through the tears. "You were meant to bring him back. You promised!"  
"He tried." Steven said. "We saw him try."  
"Let him answer." Aleca snarled. "Don't defend him."  
"No need to get nasty, my boy." The Doctor interrupted. "It's a terrible situation, yes, a terrible situation for all of you, Tromas here included."  
"It's fine." Tromas said finally. "I tried. I'd almost convinced him." He looked to Eeva. "Grieg was about to come back, for you and the baby, but the door slid closed." He swallowed hard. "It happened so quickly. There was nothing I could do."  
Eeva turned away, tears flowing down her face, before groaning in pain.  
"Come on." Karie insisted, taking firm hold of Eeva and leading her away. "You need some rest. The shock won't be good for either of you."  
"I'll come with you." Malia nodded, the three women stepping away from the gathering.

"What happens now?" Troby broke the silence addressing anyone who would listen. "Now the Governor is gone, what do we do?"  
"You live my boy." The Doctor smiled thinly. "You live. Let some good come from this tragedy, hm?"  
"But how?" Aleca butted in. "Are you going to take us away? Back to Earth?"  
Steven looked to the Doctor nervously.  
"I'm afraid we can't." The Doctor shook his head. "No, that would be quite impossible, yes impossible indeed."  
"Then what do we do?" The man snapped. "How do we carry on?"  
"The same as you have until now?" Steven suggested. "You have the technology, the station. Nothing else has changed."  
"But we can't use it." Troby answered. "I know bits and pieces." He tapped the side of his head. "But they wiped most of my knowledge when they bought me here."  
Steven turned to Tromas, not saying a word.  
"I'm just a guard." He avoided eye contact with everyone in the room. "I can't operate the supply systems, the life support, none of that."  
Steven turned to the Doctor.  
"We could use the food machine, before we go, couldn't we? Leave them enough to survive on?"  
"No, my boy, no we cannot." He gave his companion a hard look. "The food machine is broken, I'm afraid."  
"We're not following him, anyway." Aleca pointed a finger at Tromas. "We spent long enough doing that."

Steven pulled the Doctor aside, turning their backs on the crowd.  
"What are you doing Doctor? The food machine isn't broken. I used it just before we landed."  
"No, Steven, it isn't." The Doctor agreed. "But if we give them food, how can they ever survive on their own, hm? No, we need to help them operate their own systems, live under their own steam."  
"That's a change of tune." Steven smiled slightly. "I thought you were up for leaving as soon as we could."  
"I was, my boy, I was." The Doctor placed a gentle hand on Stevens' shoulder. "But, as you say, this may not have happened without our presence here. What kind of men would we be if we just upped and left, hm? No, jut this once, we must stay, help them get on their feet."

"What are you saying?" Aleca demanded. "If it's about us, we have a right to know."  
"Yes, my dear fellow, yes indeed." The Doctor agreed. "Although we cannot take you with us, Steven and I, yes we will stay until we are no longer needed, to help you get things settled as it were."  
"You'll help us find a way home?" Troby questioned.  
"I can't promise that, no." The Doctor said honestly. "I feel there is more going on here than any of us know, secrets your Governor took with him. Perhaps, in the future, if we find a way, it may happen, but for now, let's get your society back on its' feet, hm?"  
"What about me?" Tromas said nervously. "What are you going to do with me?"  
"Well, Tromas my boy." The Doctor smiled. "You know more about this station than anyone. A good position in mind of the facts, wouldn't you say?"  
"Good man to be in charge." Steven added, clarifying the Doctors' point.  
"No." Aleca and Tromas said simultaneously, a view echoed by the crowd around them. "We've lived under a society of his lot for long enough. No, if there is going to be change, there has to be change."  
"Then who do you suggest?" The Doctor grunted, affronted. "None of you are willing to take on the task, are you? Hm? So who will you take leadership from?"

The room was silent, all eyes on the Doctor, unmoving.  
"They can't even answer the question." The Doctor sighed, turning to Steven. "They want a new society, but can't make a decision, even an important one like this. Someone take some initiative hm?"  
"Doctor." Steven said, gesturing to the crowd, all still looking intently at the old man. "I think they've made their decision."  
"What?" The Doctor looked around, shocked as the realisation hit him. "Me?" He chuckled. "Well, well, how unexpected." He looked back to the expectant crowd, then to Steven.

He'd meant what he had said earlier, he really had, but what Steven had said really had made an impact. He knew this was a turning point, a moment of time that was in flux, ready to go either way. There were limits, he knew that, barriers he couldn't break; fixed moments in time, but this wasn't one of them.

"Well then," he said finally. "If I'm going to be in charge, for the time being I might add, I'm going to need an office." He turned to Tromas. "Can you lead me to a suitable room, hm? As my predecessor took his with him."  
"Of course, Governor." Tromas nodded, reaching for his hand held device once again, Steven looking over his should at it.  
"Governor?" The Doctor protested. "Oh, no, that won't do at all." He ignored the smirk on Stevens' face.  
"Then what do we call you?" Troby questioned, over the buzz of the crowd behind him.  
"What an absurd question, my boy." The Doctor berated him. "You call me the Doctor."


	6. Chapter 6- Repercussions

Tromas struggled to stop his body from shaking as he stalked down the dark corridor. It was ridiculous, he thought to himself. This late night patrol had been part of his daily routine for years, but tonight, something felt different. Before, he had always known that the Governor, and by extension himself, had control over the citizens, so there was no risk. The patrol had merely been a formality, to discourage anyone from leaving their quarters after curfew for fear of being caught.

Now, however, it was a different story. They'd all been in the same boat, the whole staff picked by a higher power and allocated to Lasel; it was not a fate they had chosen. They'd been briefed on their purpose, what but not why, on arrival, and since then they had been a unit, a family of brothers. But now, Tromas was on his own. The Doctor and Steven appeared trustworthy, and they certainly seemed to have the interests of the Colony at heart, but that didn't stop the young man from feeling nervous.

The main players in the short lived rebellion may have been wiped out in the destruction of the Upper Sphere, but Tromas knew that it wasn't that simple. That had been made obvious in the canteen, when the Doctor had suggested Tromas take command of the population. The Doctor, his new commander, had assured him that everything would be fine, that was just to carry on as normal. It was an attempt, Tromas assumed, to make the transition to this new regime as easy and un-intrusive as possible.

As he walked his usual route, Tromas couldn't help but miss the weight of his laser rifle from around his neck. In the short time they had to check, his was the only weapon they had found. The rest, he mused, must have all been destroyed along with their owners. The Doctors' first order to him had been to hand the weapon over, for it to be confiscated. The old man had taken it from him awkwardly, almost as if the object physically repulsed him. A man his age, Tromas thought, must have handled a weapon at some point in his life, yet the Doctor looked like a fish out of water, almost unsure of how to handle the gun. At one point, Tromas had been nervous that the Doctor was going to let it off accidentally. It appeared that Steven shared the same concern, as the young man had offered to take the heavy weapon from the Doctor, for safe keeping.

As Gervin and some of the others had been keen to point out, Tromas had never fired his weapon since his training, before Lasel, but none the less the weapon had become like a talisman to him, a symbol of power to help keep him safe. Now, as he followed the curved corridor around the Habitation area, he couldn't help but feel vulnerable.

Suddenly, his misgivings were confirmed as a pain rocketed through the back of his skull, sending Tromas crumpling to the ground like cutting a puppets' strings.

XXXX

The Doctor sat in his commandeered office, which had evidently been some sort of admin office for the supply system, judging by the paper work that had been sprawled across the desk. Having glanced over it quickly, the Doctor had ascertained that great care had been taken to ensure the supplies held within the station, preserved in a stasis field, would last for at least another seventy years. He had wondered, very briefly, what was planned for once these supplies ran out, but baring in mind that pro-creation was, in general, banned, the Doctor had to assume that in those seventy years time there wouldn't be an awful lot of the Colony left anyway.

The papers now sat in the bin across the room, the handle of the bulky laser rifle sticking out of the top. Best place for it, the Doctor had instructed Steven, after making sure the power pack had been removed, rendering the weapon safe. As he'd sent Steven to one of the now empty living quarters, the Doctor thought back to the various situations that his human companions had landed him in during his travels.

At the start, when Ian and Barbara had forced their way on to his ship, the Doctor could never have imagined where his path would have led. Although he'd constantly been trying to get the two school teachers home, they always seemed to find themselves in the middle of one crisis or another, many of which, it had turned out, they could assist with. Despite missing the two of them immensely, the Doctor had to admit that he enjoyed being able to wander freely in time and space, not burdened with trying to return to a specific place. He'd seen, even in the relatively short time he had been travelling with his human companions, how he could help nurture them and bring out their best.

However, as he sat at the desk, his desk, in his position of power of a Colony of around a hundred people, it occurred to him that his companions were starting to bring out the best in him too. He'd become very fond of them, Ian, Barbara, Vicki, all of them, but Stevens' compassion had reached out to him. Before, he could have justified leaving, knowing they would never come back to see the consequences, but this once it seemed they could make a difference, stack the odds as it were. After all, he questioned himself, would these poor people be left grieving and leaderless if the TARDIS had never materialised on Lasel?

The biggest question facing the Doctor, however, was just what was really going on here. He turned his attention to the monitor in front of him, trying to access any records he could. Lasel had been referred to, by everyone he had met so far, as a Colony, but the Doctor knew better.

He knew a prison when he saw one.

XXXX

Eeva lay wide awake in her double bunk, the two singles that had been pushed together when the Governor had moved her and Grieg in to the sightly larger room. Just this morning, she thought, she had everything. A husband, a child, things that no one else in the Colony had. She had been so lucky, she pondered, perhaps it was destiny that her luck had to run out eventually. Try to rest, Karie had ordered, for the good of you both, she'd said. Eeva hadn't replied, just climbing on to her bed as the nurse left, giving a sympathetic smile. Was this all she would get now? Sympathy? As awful as it made her feel, Eeva had relished in the jealousy that had been shown towards them in the last few months. Was this her punishment? That it would now be replaced with awkward smiles and forced kindness?

It had been mere hours, but she missed Grieg already, more than she could ever imagine. It didn't even feel right laying in their bed on her own, without his arm draped over her bump protectively. Karie may have been so kind and wise, but how could she possibly expect her to e able to rest? How could she, or anyone else on the Colony, possibly know what she was feeling? If any of them had ever felt grief like this, it was likely that they had forgotten it, the memories and pain wiped away along with the rest of their identity. Eeva began to wonder if that was a good thing; right now she would give anything for the pain to go away.

She would have given even more, however, to have him back. She should have gone with Tromas, she scolded herself. Maybe if he'd been able to see her there, she could have convinced him. She could have bought him back here, and they'd have sat together, grieving for the friends that they had lost. Instead, he was all she could think of. She knew how many others had also died, the staff who had treated her with kindness, her peers who had all been in this situation with her. But she didn't care, not about them.

Was this who she really was? Eeva thought, staring at the ceiling. Had she really always been this selfish, this self obsessed?

Eeva was suddenly snapped from her thoughts by a loud crack from outside her door, followed by a thud. She lay still for a few moments, fear taking hold. Was someone outside, coming for her? Coming for her baby? She couldn't remember ever feeling afraid like this, not since Lasel. In a way, she realised, they had all been lucky to have been spared from these emotions, to have had all the pain and uncertainty wiped away.

Then she thought about her unborn child. Was this really the life she wanted for him or her? To be guided through life without any need to be unsure or afraid? And if she couldn't be afraid, Eeva realised, how could she ever show any courage, ever be a role model, a mother? How could she, or any of them, return to Earth if they couldn't remember the most basic of human emotions?

No, she decided, swinging out of bed. If they were to ever get home and have a proper life again, she would have to embrace the pain, and the fear and be courageous through it. Eeva pulled a white standard issue dressing gown over her beige sleeping-suit, modified for her expanded size, and stepped towards the door and opened it.

It's against the rules, a voice inside her head muttered. She hadn't broken a rule, not overtly, in her whole time on the Colony, but there had to be a first time for everything she thought. Besides, although the Doctor hadn't said it, she assumed he would be more lenient than the previous Governor.

Her thoughts sprung away from herself, however, as Eeva took in the scene in the corridor; Tromas, in his deep blue uniform, sprawled face down on the grey floor, blood seeping from a wound on the back of his head.

XXXX

Steven awoke with a start, his brain needing a few moments to remember where he was. Despite all the different ships or stations he had been based on in his career, and the various places he'd had to sleep during his travels with the Doctor, Steven regularly found himself waking up disorientated. After a few seconds it all came back to him, before he acknowledged the loud banging on the door.  
"Steven!" A female voice was shouting. "Steven!"  
Even in his half awake state, Steven recognised the Voice as Eevas'. The poor woman, he thought, climbing to his feet, still wearing the shirt he had on earlier. He made a mental note to get a change of clothes from the TARDIS as soon as he got a chance.  
The door slid open, revealing a distraught Eeva crouched on the floor, craddling Tromas' bleeding head in her arms.  
"I found him," she insisted, pointing ack down towards the corridor. "outside my quarters." She looked up to him, eyes full of sadness. "Help him?"  
"Who would do this?" Steven question, getting to his knees to take a look at the young man.  
"Could have been anyone." Eeva replied, getting to her feet and stretching her back.  
"I suppose." Steven said, unconvinced, giving her a sideway look. Steven knew that although it wasn't his fault, Eeva blamed Tromas for Griegs' death. At the back of his mind, a little voice whispered to him, telling him how convenient it was that she found him, with no one else to be seen.

Then he looked at her.

Those eyes, so filled with sadness, but kind at the same time. She was angry and hurt, as she had a right to be, but Steven quickly decided that she didn't have it in her to do this to someone.

"He'll live." Steven said reassuringly, reaching for the communication device the Doctor had given him. "But all this means we have some bigger problems." He held the communicator to his mouth. "Doctor, its' Tromas."  
"Tromas, my boy." Came the Doctors' voice. "How strange, you really do sound like Steven on these things. Most unusual."  
"No, Doctor, it is me, Steven." He protested. "It's.."  
"Ah, Steven. It's far too late young man, far too late for hi-jinx."  
"Doctor." Steven insisted, trying to get his point across. "I mean it's about Tromas. He's been attacked."

XXXX

"So, it would appear," The Doctor boomed from the middle of the Auditorium, "that we still have some trouble makers in our midsts." He stopped, as the chatter from the crowd drowned him out. "Silence!" He huffed. "I say silence." The noise slowly diminished. "Last night, young Tromas was found in Habitation with a nasty would, yes, quite a nasty wound." The noise increased again, but the Doctor ignored the various gasps of surprise. "Luckily for him, he was found and will survive." The Doctor nodded. "Yes, he was quite fortunate. However, the fact still stands that someone in this room attacked him with, it seems, the intent to kill." He turned to Steven, who was stood by his side. "Young Mr. Taylor here will be investigating this, this most heinous crime. I would ask that you treat him with the same respect you would show me, and help him where you can."  
"And what about him?" Aleca shouted from the crowd. "Tromas? What are you going to do with him?"  
Steven took note.  
"And what would you have us do, hm?" The Doctor asked. "As your governor, I'm here to listen to what you want."  
"He's still one of them." Came a voice. "Bought us here and wiped our minds!"  
"Get rid of him!"  
"Lock him up!"  
"Very well, very well." The Doctor shouted, gesturing for them to lower the noise once more. "If that is how you all feel, then yes, yes, we shall lock him away." Steven stepped forward, horrified, but the Doctor silenced him with a look. "Of course, the cells are gone along with the Upper Sphere, but we will find a replacement, somewhere secure." He looked back to Steven, who he could see was biting his tongue, before addressing the people once more. "You are all dismissed. Yes, you may go."

As the seats bean to empty, Steven leant in to the Doctor, angrily.  
"What are you doing?" He snarled. "Tromas is the victim, you can't lock him up because they tell you too!"  
"Ah, but my boy," the Doctor smiled, "of course Tromas is the victim, and his attacker is amongst them." He gestured to the diminishing crowd. "Can you think of any better way of keeping him safe, hm? And," he chuckled, "if they think it is their idea..." He let Steven finish the sentence.  
"Then they won't go after him again, because they've got what they want!" He smiled, feeling guilty for doubting the Doctor. "That's brilliant."  
"Yes, yes quite." The old man smiled. "Now then, let's get to work, shall we?"  
"I'll do what I can." Steven nodded. "And what are you doing?"  
"Oh my dear boy," the Doctor said mysteriously. "I'm looking for answers."


	7. Chapter 7- Developments

"Of course my boy," The Doctor said kindly, his arm around Tromas' shoulder, "you must understand that we are only doing this to protect you, until things have settled a little, hm?"

"I know." Tromas nodded, trying to ignore the shooting pain at the base of his skull, as the Doctor and Steven led him to his temporary 'cell' on the maintenance levels. Of course, he knew his way much better than they did, but it was important to give the citizens the impression that he was being locked up against his will. Although he was sure the Doctor and Steven had probably guessed, he was more than happy to be kept out of harms way.

"You're sure you'll be safe down here?" Steven asked, concerned.

"Should be." He nodded. "No one other than staff would know how to get in. Besides, it's forbidden."

"Yes, yes, forbidden indeed." The Doctor pondered. "Although I fear we cannot rely on all of our people following the rules at this moment in time."

"Yeah." Steven added. "I'd imagine cracking a guard around the head with a blunt instrument is forbidden too."

Tromas shrugged.

"I hadn't thought about it like that." Quickly, he tried to change the subject, turning to the Doctor as they walked. "So, what was it you wanted me to access again?"

"Oh, I'm not picky young man." The Doctor smiled. "Anything you have authorisation for, and, perhaps anything you don't either. I suspect, yes, I suspect there is much none of us know about this place and with your Governor gone, the mainframe will be the only way we can find out."

"Personal files would be useful." Steven mused. "To at least give me a head start. At the moment I've got the best part of one hundred suspects, most of whom have a motive, however small."

"Good to know I'm popular." Tromas cracked a smile, although deep down he knew Steven was right. He had lost count of the times he'd approached the Governor, trying to get him to change things for the people of Lasel, even in the smallest ways. Every time, however, he had left the office having made no difference what so ever. Who could have blamed the citizens for not being happy, for taking their frustration out on the only part of the old regime that was left. "This is one of the maintenance rooms." He stated, stopping them in front of a metallic door. "I should be able to plug in to the mainframe safely from here."

"Yes, yes, very good." The Doctor nodded. "I shall return to my office, as it were, and keep things under control."

"And I'll start looking for evidence." Steven sighed, partly wishing he could trade places with Tromas, bar the crack on the skull of course. "You're sure there's no way of getting the security footage?"

"No." Tromas shook his head. "Security all runs on a different network for, well, security. The only interface point was in the Governors' office."

"Great.' Steven slumped his shoulders, faking a smile. "Looks like I'll be doing this the old fashioned way."

"The best way if you ask me." The Doctor replied. "Good old fashioned detective work. yes, my boy, you'll find the culprit!" He turned to Tromas. "I meant to ask, the power pack from your weapon, may I please have it? To help my research?"

"Of course." Tromas obliged, rummaging through his jacket pocket. "I won't need it." He searched for a few more seconds patting down his trouser pockets too.

"Problem?" Steven questioned, raising an eyebrow, as Tromas quickly frisked himself, panicked.

"It's not here." He exclaimed. "It's gone."

"Stolen!" The Doctors' eyes lit up. "Well, well, that is a development."

"My spare card keys too." Tromas explained, the colour draining from his face. "I used to keep them in my quarters, until it all started going sour. I thought keeping them on me was the safest place."

"Well, this should be helpful." The Doctor said gleefully, looking to Steven. "Yes, most helpful indeed."

"How?" Steven frowned. "It means whoever I'm looking for is also a thief?"

"Yes my boy, yes indeed. It means your culprit has access to the whole of the station, plus the only power pack for the only weapon on the colony."

"And that helps?" Tromas snapped, frustrated at himself more than anything.

"Of course it does!" The Doctor explained. "Why would someone steal those things if they had no intention of using them? Hmm? They wouldn't. Which means sooner or later, our guilty party will make themselves known." He looked to the two young men. "I do hope I won't have to do all of the thinking around here." He tapped the side of hishead. "This brain's getting on a bit you know."

Tromas swiped his remaining card key to the panel on the door, sliding it open.

"I'll let you know if I find anything." He sighed. Moments before he had felt like he could help the Doctor and Steven, but now he knew that someone could wander around the Colony at will, he had resigned himself to the fact that he had failed.

"Yes, yes, I shall do the same." The Doctor replied, noting the look of confusion on Tromas' face. "We are working on this together, after all."

"Well, that's different." Tromas forced a smile. "Will take some getting used to."

"We're a team." Steven reinforced. "It's the way the Doctor works."

"Of course we are, yes, a team indeed." The Doctor said, turning back the way they had come. "Now Mr. Taylor, don't you have work to do?"

XXXX

"Who'd do such a thing?" Malia posed the question, as she and the rest of the cleaning shift carried on with their work, scrubbing the forever grey walls of the habitation corridor. "We've all been here so long, it's hard to think of anyone doing anything like that."

"It just goes to show," Johan, an older man, replied, "that maybe we don't know each other as well as we'd like to think." He pause, scratching his bald scalp. "After all, none of us really know our selves, do we?"

"Who ever it was," Aleca muttered, aggressively scrubbing the wall, "did the right thing if you ask me. Tromas deserves everything he gets. Doing something terrible under orders isn't an excuse. Someone needs to stand up for us, someone needs to be the hero."

"It's all very well saying that now, Aleca." Johan scolded. "But when it comes to it, none of us stood against the Governor at the start, when it would have really made a difference. Christ, look, we're even still here now."

"So?"

"So," he said firmly, "the real 'heroes' as you put it, are the ones who died on that Sphere, aren't they? They're the ones who decided to fight." He turned away, dropping his micro sponge in to the bucket. "It's all very well being the big man when there's no one else to compare yourself too, Aleca."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" The younger man spat.

"Like I said," Johan continued, walking away, "we're still here."

"Arrogant old fool." Aleca muttered, his gaze staying on Johan as he walked away. There were various murmurings from the few other members of the shift, who slowly made their excuses to go elsewhere, to re-fill a bucket or fetch another sponge.

"So," Malia smiled mischievously at Aleca, stepping close to him. "They did the right thing, did they? Sticking up for us?"

"Of course." He unintentionally snapped, before looking apologetically to her. "Sorry."

"Don't be sorry." She whispered, putting her arms around his waist. "Unlike Johan, I'd say that 'whoever'," she raised an eyebrow, "it was that knocked Tromas out, is a hero indeed." She leant her head towards him, but he stepped back shocked.

"What are you doing?" He blurted out. "You know we can't.."

"We couldn't." She corrected him. "But the Governors' gone now." She tilted her head, a playful look on her face, despite Alecas' look of confusion, and slight fear.

"Even after everything you said in the Canteen? About me being a coward?"

"Well," she shrugged, "you're still alive aren't you? Now, how about kiss for my hero?"

"Hero?" He looked at her for a few moments, before realising what she meant. "Oh. Right, yes." A smile spread across his face. "I'm you're hero."

"Is that right?" Stevens' voice echoed down the corridor as he approached the pair, who immediately put more distance between themselves. "In that case, I think I need to speak to you, Aleca."

XXXX

"So, you're a hero are you?" Steven question, sat across a small metal table from Aleca. "And why would that be?"

"Who knows." Aleca shrugged, obviously flustered. "Women, eh?"

"Indeed." Steven replied non-commiteddly. "Still, she must have a reason for thinking that highly of you? You know," he leant across the table, "I'd heard that it was the men who attacked the Upper Sphere, the ones who died, who were being classed as the heroes right now."

"Well, they were brave, I guess." Aleca answered, begrudgingly, "but at the end of the day. they're dead. Being brave doesn't mean anything then."

"Doesn't it?" Steven snapped, his mind casting back. "Some of the bravest mean I know are no longer with us. They died in service to their world, and because of them we all live." His gaze remained locked on the slightly pathetic looking man. It wasn't Alecas' fault, Steven reminded himself. He couldn't remember a life before Lasel, he didn't know anything of the space pilots who risked their lives to keep Earth safe. But still, it made Steven so angry to think that the bravery of his fellow pilots, his friends, was being disregarded so easily.

"It's different." Aleca justified himself. "Gervin didn't sacrifice himself for us. No good has come from his death. Look at Grieg." He looked to the floor, sadly. "Eeva and the child will be alone now. That's the good his 'bravery' did."

Steven remained silent. He couldn't argue with that. He'd seen people sacrifice themselves for the greater good, because they knew they had to, but the citizens and staff on the Upper Sphere hadn't achieved anything by their deaths. It hadn't even been a sacrifice they had made themselves; the Governor had made that choice for them.

"But what about you?" Steven asked, composing himself. "Why does Malia think you're a hero?"

"I told you, I don't know."

"Really?" Steven pushed. "It's not because you bashed Tromas around the back of the head then?"

Aleca looked away, avoiding Stevens' eye line.

"She might think that." He replied hesitantly.

"But why would she? Unless it's true?"

"Maybe I didn't correct her." Aleca admitted. "It's true, I think whoever did it did the right thing." He paused. "But it wasn't me."

"Then why let her believe it?" Steven half shouted. "Why lie?"

"You said it yourself!" Aleca stood up, pushing the chair behind him with a screech of metal on metal. "Everyone thinks they're some sort of martyrs, because the Governor killed them. We're all cowards because we stayed behind."

"So you lied." Steven shook his head. "Just so she'd think more of you." He gritted his teeth, knowing he couldn't judge Aleca too harshly. He'd done very similar before after the academy, during his pilot training, it was almost a sport, a competition between the future pilots, to see who could win the most women with their exaggerated tales of flight and combat.

"This is a waste of time then." He said, getting to his feet. "You can go." Aleca looked at him sheepishly. "Don't worry." Steven added, pre-empting the question. "I won't tell her. But the truth will come out in the end."

Aleca nodded appreciatively, heading to the door.

"Good luck." He muttered. "I wouldn't know where to start. I mean, how could anyone have known where Tromas wold have been, right at that moment?"

As Aleca closed the door behind him, Steven ran those words around his head. There was only one way they could.

XXXX

"Do you still have the hand-held?" Steven asked quickly as Troby sat down at the table.

"Hello to you too Mr. Taylor." Troby replied sarcastically. "And yes, I've still got it." He reached in to the pocket of him jumpsuit, placing the device on the table.

"And what does it do exactly?" Steven quizzed.

"As far as I can tell," Troby glanced sideways at the small machine, "it shows schematic readings of the entire station."

"Anything else?" Steven pushed.

"Maintenance logs, that sort of thing."

"So, it doesn't show the location of everyone on the station then?" Steven's patience broke, getting straight to them point.

"Well," Troby looked taken-aback, "I think it does."

"You think?"

"I..I don't know." The man stuttered. "To tell you the truth, I've not been able get it working."

"You haven't?" Steven questioned, not so sure. "Everyone tells me your the technical genius around here."

"Well," Troby shrugged, "it doesn't take much knowledge around here to be considered a genius. But yes, I guess you could say that."

"Then why can't you get it working?" Steven stood, leaning on the table. He was sure there was more to Troby than met the eye.

"I know you're new around here," Troby snapped, "but you could try a little sensitivity." He tapped the side of his head. "Memory wipe, remember? Do you know how frustrating it is to have information in your head that you can't get to? To have lived a whole other life that you can't get back to?"

"Better than you might think." Steven defended himself, pulling the chair out and sitting back down. "I was a pilot once, you know. Flew ships across the galaxy, served on space stations and battle cruisers. Then, one day, it all stopped. I was captured." He cocked his head, realising it was the first time he had sad all of this out loud, properly. "Sure, I had all my memories, but still, it wasn't that different. I had no way back to my old life, to my friends." He paused. "To my family. But I guess I was lucky, because then the Doctor showed up."

"You and us both." Troby muttered under his breath, before raising his voice again. "You say you were a pilot?" He paused for a second, before reaching for the hand-held from the table. "You know, I did find something on this thing you might find useful."

"What is it?" Steven question, peering at the screen as Troby powered the device on.

"On the lower levels, beneath the maintenance floors. A large open space."

"And what's that there?" Steven pointed to a highlighted square on the line-drawn diagram.

"Well, looks to me like doors." Troby turned to Steven, lowering his voice. "Really big doors."

"A hanger!" Steven exclaimed. "Well, I guess they must have gotten you all here somehow."

"And if there's a hanger," Troby bit his lip, "maybe there're some ships too?"

XXXX

"Ah, Eeva my dear." The Doctor smiled as the heavily pregnant woman stepped in to his office. "How are you my child?"

"I've been better." She said softly, evidently having been crying recently. "Where's Tromas? None of this was hi fault, you know."

"Oh, I know, yes I know that." He gave her another reassuring smile and a slight wink, before tapping his nose. "And between you and I, my dear, Tromas isn't locked up at all, no not at all. Indeed, he is helping me with some very important work, whilst we keep him safe."

"Oh, good." Eeva breathed a sigh of relief. "I was so horrible to him." She started to sob. "If anything had happened, if I didn't have another chance to speak to him I'd have hated our last conversation to have been unpleasant." She took a tissue from her pocket, wiping her eyes. "I don't think I could have coped with that, on top of," she broke off, unable to get thr words out.

"After your husband." The Doctor finiished for her. "Yes, it was all very tragic. But, my dear," he tried to sound optimistic, "life goes on, and you have the greatest memory of him you could wish for, don't you, hm?" He pointed to her stomach.

"But what does life hold for us, Doctor?" She looked to him, with her puffy teary eyes. "Is my baby destined for a life on this station? Just living for the sake of it?"

"I'm afraid I can't answer that yet." The Doctor said apologetically."But rest assured, Eeve, if Steven and I, if we can find a way to take you home, if it is safe to do so, we will do all we can. You have my word on that."

"Why wouldn't it be safe?" Eeva snapped. "Are you saying we might not be safe? Test us if you want! In the lab!"

"Calm down, my dear." The Doctor replied, conscious of the woman's' health, and her delicate mental state. "None of us know exactly why you were brought here in the first place. We wouldn't want to take you back if would do more harm than good, would we? Hm?"

"I know." Eeva conceded. "But I just can't bare the thought of my child, mine and Griegs' child, stuck here for its' whole life."

The Doctor sighed, for once unsure what to say. He'd battled Daleks across time and space, faced the terror of revolutionary France and been shrunk to less than an inch high; but faced with an emotional, heavily pregnant woman, the Doctor couldn't help but feel out of his depth. Not for the first time, he found himself wishing Barbara was here.

"Hold on one second." The Doctor suddenly exclaimed. "Did you say lab?" He didn't let her reply. "Yes, yes you did. You said we could examine you all in the lab1"

"Yes." Eeva nodded, scrunching her face and rubbing her stomach. "The medical lab. They took me there plenty of times, once they found out I was pregnant."

"And it's on this Sphere?" The Doctor demanded, getting to his feet. "Why, you must show me at once!"

"Well, Doctor," Eeva grimaced, in pain. "That might work out quite well."

"And why's that my dear?" The Doctor asked impatiently, throwing his cloak over his shoulders and gesturing for Eeva to get out of her seat.

"Because I think the baby's coming."

"Oh." The Doctors' face dropped. "Oh, yes, oh dear me."

"Get me to the lab?" Eeva pleaded. "It's coming."

"Oh, my dear, I'm afraid I'm not that kind of Doctor." He flustered, slowly helping the woman to her feet.

"Karie." Eeva struggled through her heavy breathing. "We need her."

"Yes, yes of course." The Doctor nodded, reaching for the communication device he had slipped in to his pocket as he led Eeva out of the room.

Of course, the Doctor was far too occupied with Eeva to notice the rubbish bin by the door, completely empty of both waste paper, and the energy rifle.


	8. Chapter 8- Discovery

"Will she be ok?" Malia fussed, pacing up and down the corridor outside the medical lab, like an expectant father. "I mean, no one even knows if Karies' ever delivered a baby before, and if she can, well, she won't remember how, not properly and..." She was cut off by the Doctor.  
"Oh, do stop rambling." He scolded. "Eeva will be quite alright, I'm sure."  
"Just the two of them though? Won't Karie need some help?"  
"Well, for one, I am certainly not qualified." The Doctor adjusted his jacket awkwardly. "And, of course, there is the womans' dignity. I imagine in such a society as yours, one would become used to having their privacy. Indeed, it was one of the rules, I believe?"  
"Was?" Malia questioned, excitedly. "You mean it isn't anymore?"  
"Now, now, my dear." The Doctor started to blush at discussing such matters. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves, hm? I have much research to finish before I can make any major decisions like that."  
Malia sulked back against the wall.  
"I thought a revolution was meant to change things."  
"Perhaps, yes, perhaps it will, in time." The Doctor answered kindly.  
"Well, there's no time like the present." Malia argued. "If you can make things better, why make us suffer even longer? Why not just change things now?"  
"Because, my dear." The Doctor sighed sadly, "perhaps it is not my place to change them. My life, mine and Stevens' is much the opposite to yours, we are free to travel the universe, wandering the fourth dimension." He coughed slightly. "However, where we go is not up to us, no, that is decided for us. It is just up to us, up to me, to make sure our impact on the places we land and the people we meet is a positive one."  
"Doctor," Malia looked at him, puzzled, "I don't understand. If you really can travel around in that box of yours, why are you still here? If you're that worried about your impact on us, why not just leave?"  
The Doctor sighed deeply.  
"Perhaps, not too long ago, I would have." He explained. "I would have left this place with not another thought about any of you."  
"Then what's changed? Why is it different now?"  
"Well, Malia," he started slowly, as if struggling to admit it to himself, "just as I can change the fate of the people I meet, it would appear that they have started to change me too." He turned away from the plump woman. "Because, as much, yes, as much as I would like to deny it, as much as I would have loved to have disappeared from here, I know that you would have all stayed with me, up here." He pointed to his head. "The thoughts of you all, Eeva and the child, Tromas, and what would happen to all of you. That uncertainty would eat away at me, I'm sure. After all, Steven was right. Yes, quite right, this time. If it were not for my wandering, not for my landing here, your situation may not be as bad as it is."  
"Bad?" Malia scoffed. "Things are a hell of a lot better than they were. At least there's a chance that things might change now." She smiled at the old man, a smile of gratitude.  
"I hope so, my dear." The Doctor replied, before stretching his neck and straightening his jacket, returning to his usual composed self. "Now then, how about you run along and fetch some hot towels, hm? Just in case."  
"Of course." Malia nodded, giving him one last smile before heading down the corridor.

The Doctor watched her go, locking his feelings, his insecurities back up in his head. There was something about that woman, something that made him feel comfortable, comfortable enough to reveal how he felt. Talking, properly talking, wasn't something he had done much of even before his exile. Since then, however he had refrained from sharing his inner most thoughts almost completely. It had started with Susan; she was so dependant on him, so distraught from being cast out of their world. He had to be strong for her, which meant keeping his concerns to himself. When Ian and Barbara had joined them, nothing really changed on that front. They may have known their way around science and history, but they still needed him to remain strong, to be the figure head of the group. In fact, the one time the Doctor could remember having remotely spoken about his feelings was once Susan had left. Once he had left her. The pain, the feeling of loss, felt so raw, probably, he mused, intensified due to having kept his feelings locked away for so long. So much so, that he decided it was for the best to keep such thoughts to himself. If this was going to be his life now, travelling through time and space showing people the wonders of the universe, he was going to have to be the strong one. His thoughts, his feelings, his problems would have to be his own.

Talking to Malia, however, had been a much needed outlet. Now that was off his chest, he decided, he needed to be the figurehead of the colony, for Steven, for Tromas, for Eeva and her child, and for the rest of the citizens. He didn't know what was to come, but whatever the future held for Lasel, the Doctor would be there, standing strong.

XXXX

"And you really had no idea?" Steven questioned Tromas, as the pair of them made their way through the maintenance floor, towards the concealed elevator that Troby had found on the schematic.  
"No." Tromas shook his head. "We knew there must have been ships, or shuttles, or something, used to get us here, but after that we didn't give it much thought." He sighed, knowing that his justification was ridiculous. "We were told none of us were leaving, so it was never anything for us to worry about."  
"And you all just took that?" Steven said, incredulously. "No one questioned it?"  
"No." The young man sighed. "Thinking about it now, none of it makes sense. We all came from another life, back on Earth. Yet we all just did as we were told. Exactly as we were briefed."  
"They must have done something to you." Steven shrugged. "We know this place had the facility to wipe peoples' memories, maybe it could do more than that."  
"All of that technology stayed back on Earth." Tromas replied. "Well, that's what the Governor said anyway. But you're right. What if it was used to make us susceptible to their instructions?"  
"Would make sense." Steven added, turning a corner as per the map on the hand-held. "And once they'd made you decide to follow their rules, to do your job, there wouldn't be anything to change your mind." He paused. "Well, I guess that was the idea anyway."  
"What do you mean?" Tromas looked puzzled.  
"Well, you questioned the rules, didn't you?" Steven explained. "Whoever was in charge of brain washing you all obviously didn't count for your compassion."  
"Wouldn't anyone?" Tromas replied, shrugging off the compliment.  
"Apparently not, from what I've seen." Steven looked down to the device again, which showed that they'd reached their destination. "I mean, if they were all like you, I don't think this place would still be running the way it was when we arrived."  
"Well, this must be it." Tromas said, changing the subject. All of his time on Lasel, he had assumed that his fellow staff were fighting for the welfare of the population just as hard as he was. It hadn't even occurred to him that he was the only one who cared enough to try and make a difference. A proper difference, rather than simply turning a blind eye.

"Just looks like a wall to me." Steven frowned, gazing over the plain surface. "But the map says there's something here. Or was, at least."  
"Maybe we should get the Doctor?" Tromas suggested. "He might be able to help?"  
"No." Steven replied. "He said he was on his way to the medical floors with Eeva." He smiled slightly. "I can only imagine that baby is on it's way."  
"Really?" Tromas beamed. "Perhaps things are looking up after all, for Eeva at least."  
"Well," Steven reminded him, "apart from her husband dying, of course."  
"I know that." Tromas defended himself. "I'lll always know that. I'll always see his face as those doors slid closed between us. Every time I see Eeva and that baby, he'll be there, in my head."  
"I know." Steven nodded sympathetically. "I've had friends die, friends who I see every time I close my eyes, every time I go to sleep. I run what happened over in my head, time and time again, wondering what I could have done differently." He looked to the floor sadly. "But none of that makes any difference."  
"Then you'll understand why I just want to find any hope I can."  
"I do." Steven gave a thin smile, placing a hand on Tromas' back. "But just remember, Eeva might not be ready for that, not just yet. Mind you," He paused, noticing a slight gap between part of the wall and the domed ceiling of the corridor. "I'd say this is some hope right here, wouldn't you?"

XXXX

Aleca walked absent mindidly down the corridor, not noticing the water splashing from his bucket on to the floor with every step. Steven was right, he knew that. Malia would find out the truth eventually. Besides, he thought, what sort of person was he, if he was happy for people to think he was capable of attacking someone from behind just to impress them? That, of course, was just skimming the surface of the questions he had about himself. Because after all, when it came down to it he didn't really know what sort of person he was at all.

"Watch that." Trobys' voice snapped Aleca from his thoughts as the man rolled his eyes at the wet trail leading down the corridor. "Some one could slip on that." He smirked. "And we wouldn't want anymore accidents would we?"  
Aleca didn't reply, instead just carried on his way. Troby always did have the knack of winding him up the wrong way. It didn't help, of course, that Troby seemed to have retained a fair amount of knowledge from his past life. His technical know-how hadn't been much use before, but Troby still used it to make himself stand above the rest of them. For months on end, he'd insist on lecturing them on the workings of the stasis system every Wednesday during the supply collection. It hadn't occurred to Aleca until now that Troby could have been talking complete rubbish for all the rest of them knew.

"Aleca!" Malia's distinctive voice blasted at him as she ran as quickly as she could down the corridor, laden with sheets and blankets. He didn't even have time to give her a smile before she cut him off. "The water!" She said urgently.  
"What about it?"  
"I need it!" She pulled the bucket from his grip, dipping a finger in before pushing it back at him, soaking his beige clothing. He said nothing, waiting for an explanation, but Malia was already running past him.  
"Need hot water!" She shouted back. "For Eeva! The baby's coming!"  
Aleca simply nodded, before the news sank in, a smile spreading across his face. He took a moment to realise why he was smiling. After all, the news didn't effect him, it didn't make his situation any better. Then it hit him; maybe it wasn't all about him. Maybe the fact that something good was happening to one of his friends was enough to make him happy.

Perhaps, he thought, he wasn't such a bad person after all.

XXXX

"Ships!" Tromas exclaimed, as he and Steven stepped out of the elevator and in to the large hanger. It was huge, maybe twice the size of the Auditorium, with an upper walkway enclosed in glass. Control panels and the like, he assumed, shielded for when the massive doors opened to let the transports in and out. Or, in this case, just in.  
"Shuttles." Steven corrected him, his eyes wide with excitement. "I've not seen anything like these in years." He rushed over to the nearest shuttle. In comparison to most of the ships he had seen, it was quite small. The sides were completely straight, with fin like wings protruding form them, whilst the front curved up sharply, which reminded Steven of a bread bin he'd once owned.  
"All the same?" Tromas questioned, glancing at the other ships.  
"I'd assume so." Steven called back, as he fiddled with the entry hatch, to no avail. "Going by the size, I'd say you'd get a hundred people in each, easy."  
"That's two for the population," Tromas nodded, "one for us staff, and.."  
"One for the Governor, I'd presume." Steven finished for him. His eyes stayed locked on the craft as he tried to prise the hatch open. "We'll only need on of them though."  
"Need it?" Tromas was slightly shocked. "For what?"  
"Transport, of course." Steven rolled his eyes. "If you and the Doctor work out what was really going on here, we might be able to send everyone home." He looked the young man in the eye. "Including you, Tromas. If this hatch is anything to go by, they've been sabotaged. I won't know until I can get inside, but I guess It'll take some work to get it going again, I might as well start now." He stopped, looking to Tromas again. "Though we should tell the Doctor first." He reached for his communicator. "He should know."  
"No." Tromas grabbed his wrist, stopping him. "We don't know who else has one of those. Does any one know about this place?"  
"Well, Troby thinks he does." Steven muttered. "He's under orders not to pass that information on though. I'm hoping we can trust him."  
"Let's hope so." Tromas nodded. "But still, we know someone around here is less than honest. We can't risk them getting another upper hand. We should tell the Doctor in person."  
"You're right." Steven nodded, standing up from under the shuttle. "Let's go. We can start work on this later." As they made towards the elevator, Steven looked to the guard. "Impressive thinking. The Doctor would be proud!" He smiled, hoping he wasn't being too patronising. "What was it you did, back on Earth?"  
"You know what," Tromas said slowly, as if realising something for the first time. "I'm not really sure."

XXXX


	9. Chapter 9- Hope

The Doctor leant against the wall, feeling the ache in his back and knees. He was very much aware that his body was starting to fail him, time taking its toll, but it wasn't very often that he stopped long enough to notice the signs. The frustrating thing for him, however, was that his mind was just getting sharper, though admittedly maybe not his memory. Every time and place the TARDIS took him was a new opportunity; a chance to discover and learn more about the universe. Back when they had landed on Earth, that was the last thing on his mind. He'd resigned himself to a life in the shadows, hidden in a junk yard. It wasn't until their landing on Skaro, and discovery of the Dalek city, that his curiosity had been reignited. He thrived on it now, the new places and people that they came across. If it were down to him, the Doctor would love to be able to throw himself around the universe with the same vigour and enthusiasm as his young friends; but his body wouldn't let him. He'd left it too late. It was like being trapped, stuck in a sweet shop but unable to taste any of the the treats laden before you. It wouldn't be long now, he told himself. The Doctor sighed deeply, knowing that the day would soon come, a day he both feared and looked forward too. A day of both death and re-birth.

He knew what to expect, when it eventually came. It was something he had grown accustomed too, seeing people he knew change their faces, even their personalities. The Doctor remembered a time when he feared his first death, but now it just seemed like a milestone he needed to reach. After all, he was surprised he had even made it this long, particularly with his recent travels in mind. Even still, that day continued to march ever closer.

The day he could fully savour the treats the universe had to offer. The day he could taste again.

"Doctor!" Steven yelled, as he and Tromas burst in to sight, prompting him to stand up straight, clearing his throat.  
"Steven? Do keep your voice down." He scolded. "Now, what is it my boy?"  
"We've found something." He puffed, trying to catch his breath. "Hidden in the maintenance section. An elevator."  
"An elevator you say?" He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "And has that led to a clue, perhaps? To who attacked you, Tromas? Hm?"  
"Well, erm, no." Tromas stuttered.  
"Well, what's all the excitement about, hm?"  
"Ships!" Tromas exclaimed, his voice hushed.  
"In a hanger bay." Steven explained. "Sabotaged, but we might be able to get them flying again, given time."  
"Well, well, well." The Doctor said thoughtfully, pacing a little. "Quite a development, yes, quite a development indeed." He turned on the spot, leaning in. "Does anyone else know about this? Besides the pair of you?"  
"No." Tromas shook his head.  
"Troby saw the hanger bay on the schematic." Steven explained. "But he doesn't know we actually found it."  
"Very good, yes very good." The Doctor nodded. "Let's keep it that way, hm?"  
'That's what we thought." Tromas agreed. "It's why we didn't use the communicators."  
"Oh yes." The Doctor realised. "Very good thinking, both of you."  
"It was Tromas really." Steven admitted. Tromas looked to him appreciatively. It had been a long time since he'd felt like part of a team, despite the illusion that had been fed to the Colony since their arrival.  
"Well then," The Doctor continued, "I'm happy for you to work on the ships, but let us not lose sight of finding the culprit behind that attack, hm?"  
"Of course not." Steven nodded firmly. "I can do both."  
"Very well." The Doctor smiled slightly. "After all, we don't yet know if we will be able to send any one from here."

Tromas' heart sank a little. He'd been so caught up in their discovery, the means of escape that had been under his feet for so long, that he'd forgotten they might not be able to leave. He knew the Doctor was right of course; they had to be sure it was safe to send the citizens back to Earth. Although he had tried to keep it locked away, Tromas had entertained the possibility that the people he had shared this station with may have once been criminals, thieves or murders. Hell, he thought, what was to say he wasn't either?

"How's Eeva?" Tromas forced himself to say, to snap his mind away from its dark thoughts. "Any news?"  
"Not yet, my boy." The Doctor looked sideways to the door. "Not yet."  
Steven chuckled.  
"And what's so funny?" The Doctor asked sternly.  
"Sorry Doc-" he corrected himself as the old man glared, "-tor, I'm just so used to seeing you taking control, being involved. It's strange seeing you here waiting. Just like the rest of us."  
"I must admit," the Doctor moaned, "this 'waiting' isn't something I'm particularly fond of."  
"It's a shame we can't use the TARDIS." Steven joked. "Just jump forward a few hours."  
The Doctor shot him a look, and Steven instantly regretted his words.  
"You could do that?" Tromas exclaimed. "That box, it's a time machine?"  
"Of sorts." The Doctor replied. "Well, yes, very much so. Although, unfortunately we have very little control over where we can go.."  
"Very little?" Steven scoffed. "More like none." The Doctor looked a little hurt.  
"It's ok." Tromas said with a smile. "I wouldn't ask you to take me anywhere. I know we're here for a reason, what ever that might be. We can't just run away."  
""Glad to hear it, yes very glad." The Doctor nodded, patting Tromas on the back. "Although some, some of the citizens don't seem to share that view." He looked to Steven. "I checked the Ship earlier, several attempts have been made to get through the lock."  
"Not surprising." Steven shrugged, turning his head as the door to the medical lab slid open. "We gave them hope."  
"Lot's of that going round today." Karie smiled, poking her head out of the door. "Hope." She smiled again, the biggest smile Tromas could remember. "Would you like to meet the newest citizen of Lasel?"

XXXX

It wasn't long before Tromas had another contender for the biggest smile he had seen on the Colony. Although obviously tired, Eevas' face was beaming as she lay in the medical bed, holding her new born child in her arms. She looked up for a few seconds, before returning her gaze to the child. The Doctor stood back, as Tromas and Steven walked to her bed side.  
"Greigs' eyes." Tromas said immediately, placing a hand on Eeva's shoulder.  
"He wanted a girl too." She said softly, looking to Tromas with a smile. "I'm sorry."  
"Forget it." He replied, looking to the bundle in Eevas' arms. The baby girls' eyes were tightly closed in slumber, her chest heaving with every breath.  
"Well done." Steven grinned, leaning in. "Shes' beautiful."  
"If only he'd not loved me." Eeva said suddenly. "Not been so keen to impress me and make me proud. Maybe she'd have a father."  
"She has a father." Tromas said firmly. "And she'll know about him, I promise." He looked Eeva straight in the eye. "I'll make sure she knows what a brilliant man he was."  
Eeva smiled.  
"Thank you."

"And how is she?" The Doctor asked Karie quietly. "How are they both, hm?"  
"Both well." Karie nodded. "It seems my instincts knew more than I thought."  
"Quit often the way, yes." The Doctor replied. "It's incredible what the mind can do when it needs to, isn't it?" He chuckled. "Yes," he tapped the woman affectionately on the head, "memories may be wiped, but instincts remain strong."  
"I just wish I could understand these things." Karie sighed, gesturing to the computer bank on the wall, a wall of screens above showing various readings.  
"Oh, yes, indeed." The Doctor pulled a pair of half-moon spectacles from his pocket, sliding them over his nose. "Yes, most intriguing indeed."  
"What is it?" Karie asked, glancing to Eeva and the baby, covered with the familiar beige of the standard issue blankets. "Is there something wrong?"  
"Wrong, my dear?" The Doctor questioned, eyes still on the screens. "No not wrong exactly. No," he paused, taking his glasses off. "Just irregular, yes, irregular." He popped his glasses back in to his pocket, shooing the thought away with a wave of his hand. "No, nothing to worry about, nothing at all."

"Doctor." Eevas' soft voice came from across the room. "Won't you come and meet her?"  
"Why, of course." The Doctor replied kindly, stepping towards the bed, looking slightly shocked as Eeva held the baby up for him to hold.  
"Take her?"  
"Why, yes, of course." The Doctor said awkwardly, reaching down to take the child from Eevas' arms. Steven looked on, a smile on his face as the Doctor struggled to work out quite how to hold her.  
"First time for everything, eh Doctor?" Steven teased.  
"Nonsense." The Doctor said sternly, but softly, as he shifted the baby in his arms, settling her. "I have a Grand-Daughter you know." He looked away, turning his attention instead to the new-born. "Yes, a Grand-Daughter of my own. Susan, her name was." The childs' eyes started to flicked. "Good morning." He chuckled. "Welcome to the world, my child."  
"A name." Eeva said suddenly, as if it hadn't occurred to her before. "She'll need a name. Tromas?" She turned to him. "What do you think?"  
"Terrible name for a girl." The Doctor chuckled, a grin on his face.  
"I, er, I don't know." Tromas said sheepishly.  
"Doctor, Steven." Eeva addressed them. "What do you think? Something strong. A name she can be proud of."  
"Hm." The Doctor pondered, his eyes intently on the child. "Yes, a name. What do we call you, hm?"  
"Sara." Steven said suddenly, looking to the Doctor with guilty eyes. In the few seconds he'd had, various names flashed through his head, but it was between two. He just hoped that Katarina wouldn't take offence wherever she was.  
"Yes, my boy." The Doctor murmered. "Yes, Sara. A name to be proud of."  
Eeva bit her lip, looking to Karie and Tromas, then to Steven.  
"Just a suggestion." He shrugged, dejected.  
"I like it, I think." Eeva pondered. "But it's missing, something."  
"I know what you mean." Karie agreed. "Doesn't quite fit."  
"Saria." Tromas suggested, with a smile.  
"I like it." Steven nodded in agreement, stroking her head gently.  
"Yes, yes, very apt." The Doctor nodded, handing the child back to Eeva. "What do you think, child?"  
"I love it." She beamed. "It's perfect."  
"Well then, little Saria." Tromas smiled, "Welcome to the world. Welcome to Lasel."

"I'm here!" Malia shrieked, running in to the room, laden with towels and struggling to balance a bowl of water. She stopped in her tracks when she caught sight of the baby in her friend's arms.  
"Just a little late." Tromas teased, without even thinking. He was expecting an aggressive retort, but instead just received a sarcastic smile as she trust the bowl in to his arms.  
"Let me see...him? Her?"  
"Her." Eeva smiled, looking to Saria. "This is your Aunty Malia. I expect she won't be with us for long." Malia gave her a puzzled look. "I don't imagine she'll be able to keep this news to herself for long."  
Malia laughed, along with Karie, bfore leaning in to get a closer look at the new arrival.  
"There's not much more to tell." She quipped. "I told everyone I saw on my way that you were in labour, after all."  
"Why am I not surprised." Eeva giggled. She felt a pair of eyes looking at her, before realising it was Saria. She lay in her arms, gaziing back up with those eyes. Tromas had been right, they look jut like Griegs'. It would never be ok that he was gone, she knew that, but Saria was a part of him, a part that would always be there to remind her. And that made it better.

Steven stepped back, taking in the scene. A mother, her new-born child, and her friends. A scene that would have been quite common back on Earth, but here, on Lasel, it was unique. The first event of its' kind. He looked to the Doctor, who had also drifted away, his attention back on the computer screens. There was no way now that they could just leave. It had been easy to talk about, but now Saria was here, how could they leave? It didn't matter, Steven decided, what the truth was. He would do his best to get them off this station.

The Doctor, however, had his mind on other things. He hadn't wanted to worry Karie, but something wasn't quite right. The read outs showed everything he would have expected, vital signs, medical history, but there was something else. References, he had deducted, to other files and records, an indexing system he wasn't familiar with. Locked away behind the security wall, he assumed, if the files even still existed. Neither the Doctor or Tromas had found any luck in breaking in to the secure records, but now he had even more motivation.

The Doctor had known that committing to help the people here was never going to be short term, but it seemed like he may be spending even more time on Lasel than he'd anticipated.


	10. Chapter 10- Revalations

The floor of the vast hanger bay was littered with various tools and discarded bits of space ship as Steven searched frantically for the component he had discarded a few days ago.  
"Won't need that." He'd said, throwing it out of the shuttle door. It was only now he realised it was a vital piece of the navigational system. Oh, how he regretted that now. There was no way, he decided, that he was going to find the small part amongst the sea of wreckage he had produced over the last month or so. The Doctor, of course, had chastised him for letting it get that bad, but it hadn't had an impact. The way Steven saw it, he could either spend time keeping the hanger tidy, or get on with the repairs to the shuttle. Besides, the Doctor was a fine one to talk. He'd seen the Doctor conduct repairs to the TARDIS; he wasn't much better.

He hadn't expected it to be an easy job, but on the flip side hadn't expected it to be this difficult either. The Governor really had gone to some extreme lengths to make sure no one could leave, not without some advanced knowledge of space ship repairs, anyway.

It was no good, Steven relented. He wasn't going to find the part he needed any time soon. No, it would be far easier to raid one of the other shuttles. He'd refrained from doing so, where possible, just in case he had to give up on his shuttle and start again on another. Now, however, he was far too impatient to do anything else. He walked across the hanger bay, entering the nearest ship. It still amazed Steven just how effectively the Governor had kept the shuttles hidden for all this time. Desperate measures indeed. He'd tried to keep himself from speculating just what it was all for; what the Governor was willing to sacrifice himself and all those lives for. No, Stevens' job was to repair the ship, having lost focus on his investigation for Tromas' attacker, whilst the Doctor kept searching the mainframe for any information he could muster.

So far, his old friend hadn't gotten very far it seemed. He'd been working on it almost constantly, with little progress. The Doctor had revealed to Steven that he had uncovered recent medical records for the population, but they didn't reveal much. Every file seemed to refer to another which they hadn't yet uncovered.

Stepping in to the cockpit of the ship, which consisted of two seats at the curved end, in front of banks of passenger seats, Steven sensed something wasn't quite right. He stopped in his tracks, trying to work it out.

Then it hit him. The hatch way to this ship wasn't sealed. When they'd first discovered the ships, it had taken the best part of a day to get the hatch way to 'their' ship open. Wanting to focus on repairing it, they hadn't bothered opening to others. After all, what would have been the point? So, he thought, kneeling down to the hatchway in the floor, who had opened this one? He could see scuff marks and dents around the frame where it had been forced open. Tromas maybe? No, he dismissed the thought. He'd have said something.

He looked up, his attention suddenly drawn to a bundle of beige on a nearby seat. He quickly scrambled across, identifying it as a scrunched up jumpsuit, wrapped around something. Something heavy. Carefully, he unfolded the clothing, noticing the crimson splatters on the arm. He discarded the stained clothing on to the floor, staring at what he had uncovered.

A wrench, the same type they had uncovered in the hanger bay stores, coated on one end with dried blood. Tromas' blood, no doubt.

Steven stopped for a moment, dumbfounded as he tried to take this in, work out what it all meant. Then, the words came to him, a summary of his discovery in his head.

Tromas' attacker knew about the hanger bay and the shuttles, and could come and go as they pleased. In that case, Steven though with concern, why hadn't they? Why had they just let him work?

"Oh." He gasped out loud. "Because that's what they wanted." He made towards the hatchway, but stumbled back as the steps shot towards him, folding in to the ship as the hatch slammed shut. "Hey!" He yelled, pounding on the exit to no avail. He reached to his belt, for his communicator, but cursed when he realised it was outside, amongst the mess on the hanger floor.

It seemed that, like the Governor before them, the Doctor and Steven had under-estimated the citizens of Lasel.

XXXX

Aleca sighed as he scrubbed the same section of wall he'd been cleaning for the last month and a half. He was sure the Colony didn't even need as much cleaning anymore, convinced that the Doctor had only maintained the cleaning rota to keep them busy. If it was intended as a distraction, however, it wasn't working. All Aleca had thought about was what the Doctor and Steven could possibly have been doing for all this time.

Since they'd arrived, very little had changed. Yes, they no longer felt like the prisoners they had once been, but, Aleca had realised, that was only because the Doctor had made out this was all for their own good. He had always insisted that, if possible, there would be change, but so far nothing. His regime was almost identical to that of the Governors', but with the face of an old man. Where as the Governor had imposed over them all with authority, the Doctor had done it by misleading them, making out he was weak and frail, doing his best. In reality, Aleca thought, he was still keeping them locked up.

Steven wasn't any better either. He seemed to run around after the old man like a doting grandson, when they saw his anyway. After the first few days, he seemed to vanish for most of the day. The rumours were that he was working on something big; something to get them off of Lasel, but Aleca didn't dare believe that. The biggest frustration however, was that he had to keep all this to himself. In contrast to the time of the revolution, the rest of the Colony seemed quite content.

The arrival of Saria seemed to have invigorated most people; given them hope that there was more to life than what they had seen for the past few years. The extra rations and freedoms the Doctor had granted them just helped their opinion of him. Aleca knew he was the minority now, the voice of descent amongst a sea of content. It was far easier for him to keep quiet.

Not, he insisted to himself, because he was a coward but because it was the right thing to do. Everyone else was happy, for the first time in a long time. What right did he have to stamp on that. No, he had decided. He would keep his thoughts to himself, suffer in silence. That would be his sacrifice, how he would be a hero.

"Aleca!" Troby was shouting, running down the corridor. "Aleca, quickly!"  
"What is it Troby?" Aleca asked flatly.  
"It's Steven!" The man enthused.  
"What about him?" Aleca replied, trying to give them impression he was concerned.  
"You know this 'project' everyones' been talking about?"  
"Yeah?"  
"It's a shuttle!" Troby explained, Aleca's face dropping. "He's found a shuttle, and fixed it!"  
"You mean?" Aleca didn't dare ask the full question.  
"Yes." Troby nodded frantically. "We can go! He's told me to get everyone together. We're going home!"

XXXX

"She's doing well." Tromas smiled, as he sat on a metal chair in Eevas' quarters, Saria sat on his knee. "And such a pretty little dress too." He looked at the pink spotted out fit she was in, such a contrast to the grey and beige they'd been used to. It was the most colour he'd seen since the Doctors' blue box had appeared.  
"The Doctor gave it to her." Eeva explained, lowering her voice. "He's got a wardrobe in that box, you know. He's given her loads of clothes."  
"None for us then?" Tromas muttered, looking at his usual blue uniform.  
"I did ask." Eeva shrugged. "You know, I don't think he wants to give us too much."  
"I know." Tromas answered. "And he's right. Imagine if we were all let loose, if he took all the rules away. You know, I don't think we'd know what to do. It'd be chaos."  
"You said 'we'." Eeva pointed out. "Like you're one of us?"  
"I am." Tromas shrugged, stroking Sarias' hair. "I always have been. We were all as much prisoners as you were, you know. Just with the illusion of power."  
"That's not how it looked." Eeva said, a hint of resentment in her voice.  
"Not everything is always exactly as it looks." Tromas explained. "I had no more choice over coming here than you did." He stood up, lifting Saria and handing her back to Eeva. "That's all in the past now though. We're in this together."  
"I know." Eeva smiled, taking her daughter.

Suddenly, there was a pounding on the door.  
"Eeva!" Malia was shouting from the other side. "Open the door!"  
Tromas rushed over, tapping the panel, prompting the door to slide open.  
"Eeva!" Malia exclaimed again. "Get your things together! We're going home!"  
"What?" Tromas shouted over her. "What do you mean?"  
"What do you think I mean?" Malia snapped. "I'm sure you probably knew about it. Steven's found a shuttle.. He's taking us home!"  
"No." Tromas shook his head. "Not now, it's not ready."  
"Looks like you're not as in with them as you thought." Malia sneered. She looked to Eeva, who was stood still, shocked. "Come on! We all need to be on the Maintenance floor in half an hour!"

Tromas said nothing, darting out of the door as he reached for his communicator.  
"Steven?" He asked, waiting for a reply. Nothing.  
"Doctor?" Again, there was no response. He silently cursed the Doctor. Having become so engrossed in trying to worm out the secrets held within the data files, he had taken to turning his communicator off, to avoid being disturbed.

Frantic, Tromas darted down the corridor. He knew something was wrong. The Doctor wouldn't have allowed this, not until he knew the truth, and last time he had been to the hanger, the shuttle was no where near ready.

Was it happening again? He asked himself, as he rushed down the corridors. Another revolution? But what price would be paid this time?

XXXX

The Doctor sat in his office, pitch black apart from the light from the various monitors around him. It wasn't good for his eyes, he knew that, but he'd be getting new ones soon anyway, he thought. Besides, the dark helped him concentrate. Each day he'd been getting a little closer to breaking through the various levels of security, stepping closer to the secrets held at the heart of Lasel.

He'd been over personnel files again and again, trying to find some clues. However, the one man who'd have set up passwords and the like didn't have any records at all. All he'd managed to find was an archived image; a farmhouse sitting in the countryside. Strange, he thought, of all the things to keep on a secure computer system.

Then it hit him.

The Doctor turned to another screen one that had been frustrating him for the last month. He was sure this was the access point for the information he needed; the mission briefing, the purpose of Lasel. The logon prompt had been taunting him for weeks on end. He hadn't even entered a password, for the fear that an incorrect attempt may trigger some security measure. He hadn't come this far to wipe out all of the data due to a careless mistake.

Placing his glasses on, he leant to the keyboard attached to the monitor and typed carefully, one letter at a time.

'FARMHOUSE'

He sub-consciously held his breath as he hit the enter key, waiting for a response.

"PASSWORD ACCEPTED"

XXXX

"Steven!" Tromas bellowed as he charged in to the hanger bay, looking around frantically. "Steven?"  
"Tromas?" Came the muffled response, the young man following the sound to the nearby shuttle.  
"What's going on?"  
"Not sure." Steven replied. "But someone else knows about this place, about the ships?"  
"What?"  
"I found what they used to attack you, hidden in here." He paused "Before they shut me in."  
"Hold on." Tromas added, peering at the hatchway. "Look's like it's sealed pretty tight."  
"I'd have thought so." Came a voice from behind him. "Used the best tools I could find."  
"Troby?" Tromas exclaimed, noting the laser rifle strapped over his shoulder. "What's going on?"  
"Oh really." Troby mocked. "And you were meant to be staff? What do you think's going on?"  
"The ship's not ready, you know." Tromas shrugged. "So you won't be getting very far."  
"Oh, don't try that one." Troby scoffed. "I've been keeping an eye, it's ready enough for us to get home."  
"And how do you even expect to survive the flight?" Came Stevens' voice from within the ship-come-prison cell.  
"You've not checked the stasis-hold, have you?" Troby smiled, holding up a card key. "Already dealt with. Enough food to last as long as we need. You know, I thought you might have suspected something, Steven. You thought it was just a coincidence I happened to tell you about this hanger as soon as I found out you were a pilot?" He laughed. "I could have done it myself, in time. But then I risked being found out, and," he tapped his head, "I'd be relying on my dodgy memory. No, you were the perfect solution. And now, everyones' on their way down here, for our trip."  
"I won't let that happen." Tromas stepped forward. "Not util we know who we are."  
"And how do you propose to stop me?" Troby questioned, holding the rifle up.  
"The same way you propose to shoot me without a power pack." Tromas smiled, before realising. "Oh."  
"Tromas?" Steven shouted, "What's happening?"  
"Well, Steven," Troby mocked, "young Tromas here has just realised that if I have his card keys, I also have the power pack for his weapon." He gave a sickly smile, pointing the weapon straight ahead, just as the first few of his fellow citizens started to flow in to the hanger.

"Troby?" Aleca shouted, "What's going on?"  
"Get on the ship, Aleca. All of you." He didn't take his eyes from Tromas. "We're going home."  
"What are you doing?" Eeva shouted, making sure Saria was facing away from the scene before here.  
"Making sure we get what we deserve. Our trip home."  
"Not like this." Eeva pleaded. "Tromas is one of us."  
"No, he isn't." Troby stated. "He was part of it, he could have changed things."  
"I couldn't." Tromas insisted. "It wasn't how you think."  
"Oh, do shut up." Troby snarled, turning his head quickly to Aleca, Eeva and the others. "Get on that shuttle, now."  
"Come on." Johan agreed, leading a small goup through the entry hatch, followed by more and more. "This is what we've been waiting for after all."  
As he turned his head back, Troby saw Tromas darting away from him, towards the rest of the population. Without hesitation, Troby swung his weapon round, firing a single shot.

"Tromas!" Eeva wailed, as the laser bolt struck the young man in the chest, flooring him instantly. She went to run to him, but Malia held her back, guiding her towards the shuttle.  
"We need to go." She whispered. "Troby may have lost it, but this might be our only chance." Eeva shook her head.  
"No, we can't.  
"Think about it." Malia insisted. "Saria can have a life. She can't if we stay here."  
Eeva looked to Tromas' body, sprawled on the floor, before turning back to the shuttle, holding Saria tightly.

XXXX

Steven had darted to the communications panel of the shuttle, working quickly. He'd dabbled with communications systems before, and this wasn't too complicated. The channel on the device left in the hanger was open, meaning it was relatively simple to hi-jack the frequency .

"Troby!" Steven shouted in to the comms panel. "What have you done?"  
"What I needed to." Trobys' voice came back, from the shuttle he had commandeered. "Tromas should have known better than to get in my way."  
"He was trying to help you." Steven shouted. "That's all he ever tried to do."  
"By keeping us here? Don't be so stupid."  
"He was right though." Steven tried to convince him. "I'm not finished on that shuttle. The navigational systems are shot."  
"You can't fool me." Troby snarled. "I've set a course, that's all we need. You really have helped us you know." He mocked. "And yourself. I thought I was going to have to get rid of you today, but it was just our luck you decided to snoop around. I really didn't want to have to kill you."  
"Good to know." Steven said sarcastically. "Shame you didn't extend that to Tromas."  
"Back to him again?" Troby groaned. "Well, I can't stay and chat. We've got a journey to start."

There was a hiss of static as the line went dead, and Steven kicked the console in frustration.

XXXX

She'd done the right thing, Eeva tried to convince herself as the shuttle started to vibrate, the engines firing up. Troby sat in the right hand seat at the front, Johan next to him. She wasn't sure how much either of them knew about flying, but right now she didn't care. Tromas had died, and she hadn't done anything about it. She'd just gone along with it, with everyone else.

She looked around, to Karie, to Malia, to Aleca and the nintey-oddd others, and wondered if they were all thinking the same thing. Was this the right thing to do? She clasped Saria tightly to her chest, knowing that right or not, it was the only option that gave her and her daughter any kind of future.

It was too late for that question now though, he thought, as the ship started to move and she heard Troby mention opening the hanger doors.

This was it. They were leaving Lasel.

XXXX

"Steven?" The Doctors' voice entered the shuttle, over the comms system. "My boy, what's going on?"  
"Doctor!" Steven shouted, relieved. "It's Tromas. Troby killed him."  
"The poor boy." The Doctor replied, sadness in his voice. "Why ever did he do that, hm?"  
"He knew about the ships." Steven sighed, shaking his head. How had he not seen it. "They've taken one."  
"Taken a ship?" There was a sudden urgency in the Doctors' voice. "Steven, have they, have they left the Colony?"  
"I don't know." Steven replied. "I'm locked in another shuttle. Hold on." He scanned the control panel quickly, fiding the button to raise the panels which covered the front windows.  
"Hurry my boy, hurry. We need to know."  
As the shutters opened, Steven caught a glimpse of the shuttle raising from the hanger floor, out of the open hanger bay doors, before they began to close once more.  
"They've gone." Steven bit his lip. "I think everyone was on board. Eeva and Saria too."  
"No, no, no." Came the Doctors' voice. "This cannot be, my boy. No, not at all."  
"What's wrong?" Steven questioned, recognising the Doctors' tone. "What's going on?"  
"I've gotten in to the database, yes, the whole database." The Doctor said hesitantly. "I now what this place is, who those people were."  
"What?" Steven exclaimed. "Who were they?"  
"I'll come and get you." the Doctor said. Yes, I'll come and get you, and explain every thing."  
"No, Doctor." Steven insisted. "Tell me. What have you found?"  
"Well my boy," The Doctor started, pausing as if it was difficult to get the words out. "Did you notice, hm, how all of their names, yes their names were all very similar to those you would find back on Earth, but altered ever so slightly?"  
"I did, yeah." Steven nodded to himself. "Extra vowels here and there, yeah. But what's that got to do with anything."  
"And letters substituted for others, yes." The Doctor continued. "And it seems the same was done with the name of the colony. Do you see, hm?"  
"Lasel?" Steven questioned, wishing the Doctor would just get to the point. "Laser? Larel?"  
"Close my boy, very close indeed." There was silence for a few seconds. "Lazar."  
"Lazar?" Steven repeated, the realisation dawning on him. "As in, Lazerus?"  
"Yes, yes, regrettably." The Doctor paused. "Lasel is a plague colony."  
"And those people?" Steven couldn't bare to say it. "Eeva and the others?"  
"Yes, Steven, I'm afraid so. That shuttle, heading to Earth has on board, almost one hundred passengers, all of whom are carriers of the most deadly virus the planet has seen."


	11. Chapter 11- Truth

The Doctor and Steven sat in the cockpit of the shuttle, the hatchway now wrenched off. It had taken the Doctor much longer than Steven would have liked for him to get the door open. It was lucky, h thought, that he was used to being cooped up in ships like this. Fortunately, it hadn't taken as long for the Doctor to work his magic on the communications panel, finding a channel to the other shuttle.

They had pondered over the situation for a few minutes, wondering exactly how to break the news. They both knew they had to do something, but there weren't many options for them.

"Troby." The Doctor said finally. "It's the Doctor Can you hear me, my boy?"

"Loud and claer" Came the response. "Unfortunately. I thought we'd gotten away form you."

"Troby," The Doctor ignored him, "you all need to listen to me very carefully. I've discovered something."

"Well, this should be entertaining." He scoffed. "Go on then, we need something to pass the time."

"According to the files I have found, yes, found hidden on the Colony, not long ago, Earth was struck by a terrible plague, from out of nowhere. Fortunately, the infection was contained and casualties were minimal."

"Charming story." Troby commented, his indifference coming across over the airwaves.

"You should listen." Steven defended the Doctor. "This involves all of you." He could hear the slight murmuring of the passengers over the intercom.

"Thank you, my boy." The Doctor continued. "Yes, the infection was contained, but the virus was a strong one, yes, so strong indeed that it could never be cured in its entirety. Judging by these records, your government on Earth were considering two options." He paused. "The first, was to destroy all of the carriers, to ensure it could not be spread."

"You see," Steven explained, "the virus didn't kill its carriers, It used them to infect others, taking advantage of those who were immune."

"Yes, yes, quite." The Doctor flustered. "Of course, there was outrage at these plans, outrage that people would be killed for no fault of their own."

"So what was the other option?" Johans' voice came over the intercom, though Steven suspected he had already worked it out.

"The Lasel project." The Doctor stated. "A colony to re-house the carriers, away from Earth, so no one else, no, no one else had to die."

There was a roar of sound from the travelling shuttle as the population took in the news.

"That's why you couldn't leave." Steven sighed. "Or the staff. They were carriers too, because of their interactions with you. Probably why they were chosen, as they were pre-disposed to carry the virus but not suffer from it."

"And Saria?" Eeva's voice sobbed from the shuttle. "She's infected too?"

"No!" The Doctor suddenly beamed, his tone changing. "You see, there is good news too, yes, indeed. Did you ever wonder why the Governor allowed new life on Lasel after all that time, hm?"

"No." Eeva admitted. "I was just happy."

"Of course my dear, of course." The Doctor smiled. "But, you see, your child was an experiment. The 'tests' they ran during your pregnancy were just that, a test of their ongoing work."

"What do you mean?" Eeva questioned. "What have they done to me?"

"Your child," The Doctor said softly, "the first to be born on Lasel, was so much more. She was part of a long experiment, yes, an experiment to produce an immunity to the virus, even as a carrier. A chance for life to continue on the Colony, so in time, generations that were born could return home."

There was silence for a few moments.

"Did it work?" Came Eevas' voice.

"Judging by the results I've seen, I would say so, yes." The Doctor replied. "There is no sign of any infection. Her immune system is more than perfect in fact."

"But you still have to come back." Steven interrupted, giving the Doctor a look. He didn't want to give them any more false hope. "You can't go back to Earth, you'll put every one at risk."

"Rubbish." Troby snapped. "They're just trying to get us back. Don't listen to them. Besides," he voice dropped, "we can't get back. As you said, Steven, you didn't finish the navigational systems. We're on a one way trip."

"Troby, my boy." The Doctor pleaded. "Listen to me, you need to do what you can to get back here, back to the Colony." He tapped at some buttons on the console. "I'm sending you the files, yes, all the information I've seen, your personal files too. Take a look, hm?"

"Good bye Doctor." Troby sneered. "We'll be the ones deciding our fate, for once."

There was a loud crackle as the line went dead.

"Doctor?" Steven questioned. "What do you think they'll do?"

"How should I know? Hm?" The Doctor snapped. "No, I don't know." He turned away. "They had hope after all, right under their noses, they just didn't know it was there."

XXXX

"We've got to stop." Johan shouted, standing nose to nose with Troby. "We can't carry on. You heard them. We'll wipe them all out."

"Rubbish." Troby yelled. "We carry on."

"What if it is true?" Aleca stepped up. "If it's all true? We might get back to our families, and kill them in the process."

"It's a risk I'm willing to take." Troby muttered. "We've come this far, there's no going back now."

"And why do you get to decide?" Aleca questioned, ignoring the noise behind him. "If you decide for us how does that make you any difference from the Governor or even the people who sent us out here on the first place?"

"It's pointless arguing anyway." Troby stated, pushing Aleca out of the way. "The navigational system is locked. There's no changing it."

"We have to do something." Malia argued. "We all want to go home, I know we do, but would any of us really want to risk the entire population of our home, just for our freedom?" She looked to the rows of passengers, pleased to see they appeared to be, in the majority, agreeing with her.

"But Saria." Eeva sobbed. "She's safe. She could have a life.

"She will." Troby insisted. "Because we're going home." He picked up the laser rifle, and pointed it towards the crowd. "I'm not giving up now."

"It's not your choice, Troby." Malia challenged him. "We all appreciate what you did, but now we know the truth. It changes everything."

"It changes nothing." He argued.

"But these files," Johan added, "they back up what the Doctor said. It all adds up." He paused. "And here are our files. Everything about us. Who we were."

Troby was suddenly distracted.

"Show me." He leant towards the screen, but suddenly lurched forward as Aleca barged in to him, pulling the weapon from around his neck, and holding it up. He tried to look as confident as he could, although he really had no idea what he was doing.

"Oh, big man, Aleca." Troby mocked. "Go on, kill me. Be the hero."

"You think that would make me a hero?" Aleca scoffed, looking to Malia, Eeva and the others. "You think they would all respect me if I shot you right now? Well, they wouldn't." He paused, keeping the gun trained on Troby. "So no, I'm not going to kill you. But if you make another move, don't think I won't take your leg off." He looked to Eeva and baby Saria. "Sorry."

"I don't know what you expect to do." Troby shrugged, Aleca walking him to a seat. "We're stuck on course for Earth."

"Oh, there's a way." Johan frowned. "I can stop us." He looked to Eeva. "And I think I know how we can give Saria a future too. But," he said sadly, "it'll be one hell of a sacrifice."

XXXX

"Doctor? Steven?" Eeva's voice came across the communications panel. "Are you there?"

"Yes my dear." The Doctor replied. "We're here. What's happening, hm?"

"We've made a decision." She said boldly. "We can't come back, but that doesn't mean we have to go back to Earth.""

"No." Steven protested, leaning towards the microphone. "You can't."

"We have to." She argued. "If we disconnect the navigational systems, we'll just keep drifting, harmlessly out in to space. Earth will be safe."

"But they'll be no going back." Steven shouted. "You'll all be stuck out there."

"It's been decided." Eeva confirmed. "Majority vote." She laughed slightly. "We even remembered how to vote."

"A very brave choice." The Doctor commended them. "But I must agree with Steven, I cannot allow it, we can find another way, hm?"

"You don't have to allow it, Doctor." Eeva stated firmly. "We've already decided."

"And Saria?" Steven questioned. "You're happy for her to have that life? Drifting around space?"

"She won't." Eeva replied slowly. "We've found a solution."

"My dear," The Doctor replied, "what have you done, hm?"

"Johan found a pod on board." She was on the verge of tears. "For one passenger."

"No." Steven yelled. "You can't be serious."

"It's the only way." Eeva sobbed. "She can have a life, back on Earth."

"But without you!"

"A life is a life." Eeva protested. "It's more than she could ever have with me." She paused. "I need to go. It's time. We need to destroy the navigation, all of the controls so we can never be tempted. And the communications systems. We can't risk being found again."

"My dear." the Doctor said, placing a calming hand on Stevens' shoulder. "It's a very brave thing you are all doing, you must know that."

"Thank you Doctor, Steven." Eeva replied, before the line went dead. "Good bye."

"No!" Steven shouted, pounding a fist in to the wall of the shuttle. "There must be something we can do? If we repair this one we can go after them. Bring them back here. That'd be better than what they'll have other wise."

"My boy," the Doctor said calmly, "they have made their choice, yes, their choice, We must respect that."

"We can't just go." Steven snapped. "How can we just walk away?"

"Because, Steven, we have caused them enough pain and trouble, don't you think?"

Steven took a few moments to realise what the Doctor meant. If it hadn't been for them arriving on Lasel, none of this would have happened. The Governor would have seen his experiment come to fruition when Saria was born. Perhaps then, more children would have been born, whole new generations, free of the virus that haunted their parents. Steven knew it would have taken years, perhaps generations, until the population of Lasel could have returned home, but they were generations who would now never exist, because they interfered.

"If this is our fault, we have to make it right." Steven shouted. "How can we do nothing?"

'And what would we do, hm? Tell me, what would we do?" The Doctor glared at him. "Any decision we make would take their freedom away from them. Yes, they have sacrificed their lives, but it is a choice they have made. The first decision they have been able to make for themselves for quite some time, hm." He lowered his tone. "Sometimes, Steven, a good man needs to know when to stop."

"I guess whoever set this up thought they were a good man too." Steven mused. "After all, it was an alternative to killing them all."

"No doubt, yes, no doubt." The Doctor agreed. "A new start for them all too. Yes."

"Oh." Steven realised. "By wiping their memories, making sure they had nothing to miss."

"The kindest solution they could find, hmm."

"But what about the staff? The Governor, Tromas and the others?"

"According to the files, the Governor volunteered for the position. Yes, quite his own choice. Wanted to make a difference, perhaps, hm?"

And Tromas?"

"Why don't we take a look?" The Doctor replied, pressing some buttons on the console in front of him.

Steven watched as the file opened, showing a picture of Tromas on the screen, lines of data scrolling before them. They both fell silent as they read.

CANDIDATE 17

DESIGNATED TROMAS

AGE: 24

CHARGE: PETTY THEFT, ORGANISED CRIME, INTIMIDATION, ATTEMPT TO PERVERT THE COURSE OF JUSTICE

SENTENCE: EXTREME REHABILITATION. CANDIDATE WILL REPLAY HIS DEBT TO SOCIETY BY CARING FOR THE CITIZENS OF LASEL. BASED ON HIS AREAS OF EXPERTISE WE SUGGEST A SECURITY POSTING. LOYALTY, ALTHOUGH MISPLACED, IS TO BE COMMENDED. POST CONDITIONING WE FORSEE NO CONCERNS.

"He was a criminal?" Steven said finally. "But he was so nice, caring, loyal."

"And calculated, hm?" The Doctor suggested. "Fantastic logic. All qualities that if focused in the wrong place, can be quite useful, I'd imagine."

"I suppose." Steven shrugged, still dumbstruck. "But there was no sign of it at all."

"Much the point, I'd assume." The Doctor explained. "The conditioning took away all of his past, the history that made him act how he did. With the right stimulus and influences, the same man can end up quite different, yes, quite different indeed."

He paused. "Once again, done for the right reasons one would presume. A chance for them to repay their debt, atone for their crimes."

"But not giving them a choice." Steven scowled.

"Still, my boy," The Doctor said kindly, "Done with the best of intentions."

"The road to hell." Steven muttered.

"What's that, my boy? Do speak up, hm?"

"The road to hell." He repeated. "Paved with good intentions."

XXXX

For the first time in his life, the one he could remember anyway, Aleca felt proud of himself. He knew he'd done the right thing. Troby was a loose cannon, but that didn't mean he needed to die. It wouldn't be easy, travelling through space, with no destination, for the rest of their time, he knew that. Adding Troby to that would make things even more difficult to start with, but that didn't mean killing him was the right thing to do. He had no doubt that Troby would think him a coward for not pulling the trigger, but that didn't matter to him anymore. There would only be one person telling Aleca how to act from now on; and that was himself.

Malia looked admirably at Aleca from across the ship. He may not have known it, but she was convinced he'd just saved every one on board. If an out break of violence didn't kill at least some of them, Malia was sure they would never have made it to Earth any way. Given time to think about it, she realised that an un-identified craft carrying around a hundred people wouldn't go un-noticed, and when Earth realised where they were from, they'd have been blasted out of the air. That was the original solution for them, after all, kill them in-descriminantly.

Eeva sat in her eat, sobbing as Malia put an arm around her. There had been no other choice, not if she wanted a life for Saria. She'd barely been able to let go as she placed the baby in the pod, Johan setting the co-ordinates in to it. It had been an unusual feeling, making a decision, something that would have a lasting impact on the lives of others. And her own. In the space of two months, she'd lost the two most important people in her life. At least, this time it was her choice. Eeva knew she wouldn't have been able to live with herself had she kept Saria on board. All she would be doing was denying her daughter a life.

A life that Tromas now wouldn't have either. She'd barely had a chance to think of him, a fact she immediately felt guilty for. His death had occurred for no real reason, a consequence of circumstance, She hadn't known him as well as she'd have liked, but if there was anything Eeva knew about Tromas it was that he was a good man.

She looked over to Troby, sat away from the rest of them. Aleca was stood at the helm with Johan, looking back to Troby every now and again. They'd taken the laser rifle apart, sending the vital power pack away on the pod with Saria. It was a decision that they had all made together, as a community. As was the one to discard the files the Doctor had sent them. That had been a tricky one, but they had come to a decision in the end. Many of them wanted to read the files, find out all about their past lives. Eeva however, was one of those who didn't. She knew they would be spending the rest of her days here, she wasn't sure she wanted to be dwelling on a life she once had.

Malia had agreed with her, and managed to convince most of the others rather quickly. It hadn't taken long for Johan to transfer the files to the pod instead, storing them on the on-board black box. That way, they had decided, when the pod was found, the people back home would know the truth. Furthermore, Eeva thought, bringing a smile to her face, what Tromas had said would be true. Saria would know all about her father, even more than he'd known about himself.

Yes, she thought to herself, the memory of Lasel, the memory of Greig, would live on.

XXXX

"Could we be infected, Doctor?" Steven asked as they entered the TARDIS. "I mean, if it was that important to keep them quarantined, it must have been pretty contagious."

"Well, I for one will be fine, my boy." The Doctor nodded, throwing his cloak over the hat stand in the corner. "But we should have you checked over, yes, yes, quite right." He paused. "Although I believe you should be quite fine, yes, quite fine indeed. You see, the virus was of alien origin, preying on those that had not been exposed to the differing atmospheric conditions and the such. They had no immunity, and those that were more immune, yes, they became the carriers. You my boy, yes, you would have more than most."

"Good to know." Steven mused. "Nice to have a bit of good news today."

"You must learn to see the good in things, Steven." The Doctor said softly. "Other wise, life becomes quite miserable indeed, I'm afraid."

"And what good do you want me to see, exactly?" Steven snapped.

"The child." The Doctor defended himself. "She will have a life now, yes when she arrives back on Earth. She will be taken care of, I'm sure."

"I hope so Doctor."

"Perhaps, yes, perhaps we will meet her some day, hm?" The Doctor smiled, trying to cheer his companion up.

Steven nodded silently, thinking that he would rather not. At least this way, he could believe that Saria would have a good live with a loving family back on Earth. He couldn't bare finding out that something else had happened to her, not on top of everything else.

"Well then," The Doctor said, running his hand over various controls, trying to make sure he remembered them all after months of having not used them, "I believe it's finally time for us to leave."

With a lurch of the Time Rotor, the TARDIS was launched in to time and space, hurtling towards it's next destination.

And, across space, the small pod did the same. Saria lay inside, held in stasis, unaware as her pod headed for Earth, carrying the Child of Lasel to her new home.


End file.
